Actors
by resistanceisuseless
Summary: Romance and Friendship feat. All Time Low and One Direction. When Chloe goes on tour with All Time Low, things get out of hand and she starts forgetting what she has back home.
1. A shopping trip with unexpected outcomes

'Did you still want to go to shopping at Cribbs, today?'

'I don't know, the weather looks pretty bad,' I replied to Jordan who was talking to me on the phone. I looked out the window and my heart dropped. It was pouring; there were puddles in every crack and dip in the road and water was dripping off the roofs of the surrounding houses. It was dark, dreary and barely looked like it was only 11:30 in the morning.

It was summer, believe it or not and Jordan and I had planned a major shopping trip to the Mall after saving up every penny we had for months as a birthday treat for me. It was my birthday in a couple of days anyway, and Jordan thought it would be good to do something. After waking up to the sound of the rain, I'd automatically assumed that the shopping trip was off, so I was sat on my bed in jeans, a t-shirt and had my hair tied up in an untidy bun talking to Jordan with my legs crossed.

'We might as well. We've only got two more weeks left of summer and I've got tons of homework to catch up with,' Jordan argued, clattering around in the background with her laptop. 'This week will be the best; I can use next week for homework.'

I moved to the end of my bed, my feet dangling over the edge. Staring at my collection of One Direction posters, I thought deeply about whether to risk it or stay in and organise the trip for another day.

'Okay, we'll go. I'll just have to text Jess and Emily,' I heard Jordan mutter an 'okay' because she was busy and put the phone down. As I put my phone to my ear to call Jess first, I flicked through the clothes in my wardrobe to pick what I was going to wear. I grabbed a black and white stripy t-shirt, a pair of skinny jeans, my red Converse and one of my favourite hoodies – my limited edition All Time Low one I got from Jack when I met him.

By the time I'd grabbed the clothes off the hangers and got my underwear, Jess had finally picked up.

'Hello?' she sounded like she'd just got up – which she probably had.

'Get up, lazy. The shopping trip's still on; we're leaving soon,'

'Okay, I'll be at yours in a bit; just let me get dressed and I'll walk round,' she told me before I put the phone down.

After I'd called Emily, I got myself ready. I showered, got dressed and put on make-up – I wasn't too heavy on make-up because I didn't want to go round looking plastic so I stuck with black eyeliner and mascara; applying it lightly and not thick. I text Jordan telling her the others knew and we'd leave at 1:00. I grabbed some lunch and headed out the door to Jordan's after Jess arrived.

When we got to Jordan's, Emily was already there in her car. We all piled in and I drove us to the Mall. It was 2:00 in the afternoon by the time we arrived and it took us 15 minutes to try and find a parking space. I drove round in circles while the girls were on look-out for spaces. It may have been grim, but people sure assumed no-one was going to go shopping. Clearly, they were wrong.

When we finally managed to get a spot – right across the car park – we trekked to the shops. It wasn't as busy as I had thought. Surprisingly, it was basically dead.

'Are you sure we haven't just stumbled into the beginning of a zombie apocalypse?' Jordan ridiculously suggested, looking around at the few people who were shopping.

'Or maybe people don't want to come out because the weather is crap?' Emily said bluntly, looking at Jordan with her 'that's-so-stupid' expression.

I rolled my eyes at the two girls, who were fighting over which theory was more believable. It doesn't take a genius to guess who won.

We spent the next two hours wandering around the different shops there were but we spent most of our time in HMV, spread out in the different sections. Jordan and I were busy looking in the rock and metal sections while Emily was in the pop section and Jess was looking at the merchandise. Unlike before, the things I wanted, I got. Usually, whenever I came into Bristol with friends, I had to choose one or the other because I didn't have enough money but now I had loads.

After flicking through a load of CD's and clothes, I finally settled for All Time Low and Paramore CD's and a One Direction t-shirt. Some people thought it was weird, my liking of rock and metal but then loving One Direction. I supposed people didn't think I varied my music much but the truth was I did.

The girls had decided what they were buying and as usual, Jess couldn't choose so she'd bought Paramore, All Time Low, Kids in Glass Houses and Michael Buble CD's, a Kids in Glass Houses t-shirt, a Beatles mug and All Time Low badges. Jordan had been safe and just bought Black Veil Brides and My Passion CD's and Emily only bought Adele and Bruno Mars posters.

After we paid one after the other, we left and the Mall looked completely dead. HMV wasn't as busy as usual and there were hardly any people around at all.

'Well, it's pretty quiet here, isn't it?' Everyone looked at Emily, unimpressed.

Emily was usually the one who stated the obvious even though she had a lot of common sense. No-one bothered to reply to her and we headed straight for Costa Coffee.

We ordered our drinks and grabbed a spot right by the window looking out onto the not-so-busy road. It was still raining and it didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon.

I sighed.

'Why does the weather have to be so darn bad in England?' Jess asked. This was the first time she'd spoken in ages – she was the quiet one of the group.

'Something to do with us getting the cold from the north, the heat from the west – something like that I can't remember,' I replied, still looking out the window.

When our drinks came, we paid the waitress at the table. I sipped my hot chocolate as Jordan told us about how much of an asshole her ex was.

'... He was such a dick, cheated on me with some whore-bag then tried to sleep with me after he said he was drunk that night,' she explained, emphasising on the drunken part. 'And he's still trying to talk to me.'

'Well, you deserve much better than him, Jordan. He was such an idiot,' Emily said to her. As I took another sip of my drink, I nearly spat it out all over Jordan who was sat opposite me. The only reason was because of what I saw.

'Whoa! Chloe, what was that all about?' Jordan nearly jumped out of her skin with shock.

'I thought I saw... no it wasn't. Ignore me, sorry guys,' I muttered, half to them, half to myself.

'Who was it you saw? Tell us,' Jordan said turning around to look out the window. Then she was the one who spat her drink out but not all over me, all over Jess.

'Ah, crap!' Jess was about to start ranting but Jordan had pulled us under the table before Jess could get another word in. Before we knew it, we'd been shoved under the table and told to be quiet.

'What are you on?' Emily mouthed, gritting her teeth.

'It's Josh. He's here and he's just outside. If he sees me I'm screwed – he'll follow me everywhere until we leave!'

I looked over and saw a tall guy with styled dark hair standing with his friends,

'We can't stay here all day until he goes, can we? Ow,' I whispered, as I hit my head on the table. Jordan muttered something, slowly got up from under the table and sat on the seat like nothing happened, refusing to look back at where she saw Josh. The rest of us got up and looked around, making sure we weren't notice in the cafe looking like complete idiots.

'See? He's gone,' I said, glancing over in the direction Jordan had seen him.

'No he hasn't,' she replied, pointing over to the counter where we got our drinks from. 'He's right over there. Can we leave now?'

Emily and Jess nodded in unison as we grabbed out drinks and sneaked out before we could be spotted. We'd been in Bristol for just over three hours Emily had only just said she had a list of things she needed to get for college next term.

'You could've said when we got here,' I told her, annoyed by the fact that we'd been here for ages and she'd only just told us. 'How long are you gonna be?'

'I don't know. There's only about 7 items so I don't think I'll be long.' With that, Emily ran off to find all her things and told us we were to meet her back at Costa Coffee when she was finished.

'Hey, can we go to the Disney store? I need to get something for my brother,' I suggested to Jordan and Jess, who were quite busy checking out some boys that walked past.

They both nodded and I got my phone out to text my mom as the girls slipped behind to keep the guys in sight. I was texting so I was looking down at my phone and I didn't realise where I was going before it was too late.

All I heard was the girls shout 'Chloe! Look out!' and then I felt something smash against me. I'd walked straight into someone because I wasn't looking where I was going.

'Oh my God, I'm so sorry, I was too busy texting and I didn't look where I was going! I'm really sorry–' I had started rambling and that wasn't a good sign.

By this time the guy I'd walked into turned around and looked at me.

'Hey, calm down, its fine. Don't worry about it,' he said, laughing slightly. I didn't dare look at him but for some reason I automatically lifted my head.

I couldn't believe it.


	2. Louis

There he was; standing there with his icy blue eyes, his chocolate brown hair – clearly dyed – and the warmest smile you could possibly imagine. Dressed casually, and arms filled with shopping bags, Louis Tomlinson – one fifth of One Direction for the people who didn't know who he was – was standing right in front of me. I stood there, frozen to the spot and unable to move until Louis shook me.

'Hey, are you okay? I'm not that hard am I?' He said in a joking kind of way which was cute.

'Sorry, I'm just... I never thought I'd see you here, I explained, not bothering to see whether the others were still here or had disappeared. 'You being really famous and everything.'

'Yeah, well, as you can see there aren't many people around so I thought this was the best time to do some shopping? Weirdly, not one person has come up to me and said "hey you're that guy from One Direction" and no screaming super fans have attacked me... yet,'

'Hey, you're not saying I'm a super fan girl, are you?' I said, crossing my arms and pretending to look insulted. He just laughed.

'No, I'm just hoping you aren't,' he replied, adjusting his bags so they didn't leave marks in his arms. He ended up putting them on the floor.

'Hey have you got any paper?' Which was an unusual question for him to ask but I rummaged around in my bag and found a scrap piece of paper. I handed it to him and he pulled out a Sharpie from his pocket and scribbled his autograph on it. I glanced round to see if Jess and Jordan were still there, which they were, and saw that they were flicking from the guys they'd seen and me and Louis.

As he handed me back the paper I said, 'this is kind of a routine for you isn't it? You see someone who's a fan, sign and leave. You must get bored, don't you?'

'I haven't really thought about it. It's a routine sure, but I don't think I've ever thought of it as boring. I'm just happy people like me; I used to be hated at school.' Louis glanced down at the ground awkwardly, like he was ashamed of why people hated him.

I decided to change the subject.

'So where are the other guys? Are they with you?' I didn't want to bog him down with questions, but it seemed weird that he was on his own.

'Yeah... I'm kinda not talking to them at the moment. We had an argument and it lead to us going off in different directions for a while,' Louis explained. I laughed.

'Ha, that's ironic. One direction? Different directions? Sorry, it was amusing at the time,' I just embarrassed myself in front of, possibly, the cutest guy ever.

To my surprise, he laughed too.

'Dude that's quick thinking; I like you,' He smiled again which made my insides go funny. As we laughed, what sounded like his phone started ringing.

'Hello? Yes... No, I'm in the Mall... sure I'll be there now,' He looked at me with a sad face. "I've gotta leave, but I'll catch you later okay?'

I'd just managed to stifle an 'okay' before he winked at me and ran off into the rain. Oh my god I'd met Louis Tomlinson. Finally, the girls had managed to detach themselves from stalking boys and walked over to where I'd been frozen for the last ten minutes.

'Oh no you didn't girl,' Jordan mocked, lightly punching my arm. I didn't flinch until Jess punched me in the same spot a lot harder.

'He... is the nicest person ever,' I managed to squeeze those words out while staring at the path he'd taken.

'Why didn't you guys come over?' I asked, finally snapping out of my daydream and looking at them both.

'You looked like you were having fun so we thought that we should stay out of the way,' Jordan started,

'And we were stalking boys of our own,' Jess finished.

After we all burst out laughing, we went to find Emily, who was, as you would have thought, in the HMV again, looking at the One Direction merchandise. We snuck up on her and screamed at her, which made her jump and which we found extremely amusing.

Emily glared at us and went back to looking at some t-shirts she'd found.

'Met him,' I said, pointing to the 'I love Louis' t-shirt.

'Since when?' she protested.

'Since, like, 10 minutes ago. I bumped into him. Literally,' I said, in a tone of voice that sounded like I was proud to have nearly knocked him over.

'Liar.'

'You want proof? Guys, didn't I meet him a minute ago?' the girls nodded at my question and I pulled out the piece of paper Louis had signed and showed it to Emily. She was clearly shocked and looked at me with an apologetic smile which I returned.

After Emily paid, and we'd gone to throw our empty drink cans in the bin, we decided to waste some time by playing games and reading books we weren't going to buy in some random book shop. Jordan and I were busy taking the piss out of a Justin Bieber book and Emily and Jess were looking at the vampire section when I got a text from my mother... again.

'Hey guys, my mum just said that it's the last showing of The Inbetweeners Movie today before they release it on DVD. We should go watch it,' I said.

'Sure, why not,' Emily said.

'Yeah, let's see it for the 600th time,' Jess said bluntly.

'I'm not so keen on them but I might as well go. It'll be a laugh,' Jordan wasn't so eager but agreed to go and see the film. I'd seen it about 7 times so it wasn't anything new for me; I just enjoyed watching it.

After finishing helping Emily find her things for college, we got in the car and drove to the cinema, where it was the definite opposite of the Mall. People were rushing in and out, pre-ordering tickets and getting food, not to mention the length of the lines.

'You are joking,' I moaned, going to turn back but Jess pulled me towards them.

'We might as well wait. All of these people seriously can't be going to see The Inbetweeners.'

So we joined the line and waited... and waited... and waited... and waited a bit more. Okay, we waited about 30 minutes until the line was getting into a smooth routine and was gradually moving. I was checking my phone every now and again – there was no reason why, it was just one of those things I did naturally. After waiting another 15 minutes, I got fed up.

'Oh come on guys, this is ridiculous. What's the point? We've seen it millions of times yet here we are, waiting in a stupidly long line for tickets. Can we please leave?'

I went to turn around until I walked straight into somebody.

'You've got a thing for walking into people, haven't you?' Louis laughed and held me steady.

'Sorry, I have a tendency not to look where I'm going half the time I'm awake. And even then when I'm asleep I sleepwalk and... Well you can guess where it goes from there,' I said.

Louis laughed and just said, 'hey, it's cool, don't worry. I'm a walking disaster too. Harry, this is Chloe – the girl I met in the Mall,' I hadn't realised Harry Styles had been standing behind Louis the whole time and what looked like-

'LIAM PAYNE!' Jess screamed and pushed past me so I got knocked over into Louis. I muttered under my breath as Jess squealed and threw her arms around Liam's neck. He looked shocked and hugged her back awkwardly. Louis and I were still holding onto each other's arms as we looked at Jess and Liam.

I looked at Emily and Jordan who were as shocked as Liam was too.

'Anyway,' I said, pulling away from Louis before the situation was made more awkward, 'what are you guys doing here anyway?'

'Hmm, maybe we're coming to watch a movie seeing as we're in a cinema,' Louis joked.

'Well duh, but what are you going to see?' I asked, sarcastically, playing along.

'We thought we'd come to see The Inbetweeners Movie 'cause apparently it's the last showing today and we haven't seen it yet,' said Harry, who'd been quiet but spoken up when Louis didn't answer my question because he was too busy on the phone having an argument.

'I didn't! I swear to you, you should know I'm not like that-' he'd been cut off by the person on the other end of the phone and whoever it was, they were yelling loudly enough for me to hear snippets of the conversation.

I looked at Harry who just shrugged at me and mouthed 'girlfriend' at me. I nodded and checked my phone to pretend I wasn't listening when I could clearly hear the conversation,

'Liar... you did... no...' I heard the girl scream down the phone until Louis put the phone down on her and she was cut off. I didn't dare ask him questions unless he thought I was being nosy and invading his privacy.

'My now ex girlfriend has accused me of cheating,' Louis said to Harry without turning his back to me. Harry just stared opened mouthed at Louis and he needn't say anything because Louis just nodded at him.

'Chloe, hurry up!' I heard Emily shout. She was already getting her tickets and I hadn't realised that we were next in line. I ran and got the tickets Jess had finally separated herself from Liam but was still talking to him on the way there.

We met up with the boys just outside Screen 1; the biggest screen in the cinema. As we were let in early, we got our choice of seats in the room, and we chose the best ones. Emily was sat on the end next to Jordan, then it was me sat next to Louis who sat next to Harry and Liam, and finally Jess was sat in her seat next to Liam, who was over the moon.

We were happily chatting when someone unexpected turned up out of the blue.


	3. Movies

She turned the corner so everyone could see her clearly and Jess groaned. Amy, the girl who everyone had fallen out with had turned up and sat next to Emily.

'Hey guys! Fancy seeing you here,' she said eagerly.

'Yeah, complete coincidence,' I said gingerly. Louis playfully poked me in the arm and sniggered. Amy got out a big bag of popcorn and opened it loudly.

We waited for the film to start while Amy was stuffing her face as usual. As the trailers started and the lights dimmed down, Amy was making more noise than ever. I sighed and pulled out my phone to put it on silent. I had a text but it was only from Facebook so I didn't bother to read it.

Halfway through the film, Amy decided to start messing around by throwing popcorn at everyone. She hadn't realised who we were with and threw popcorn right in my face from the end of the row.

'Amy, stop being an idiot.' I hissed, wiping popcorn off my hoodie and dropping it on the floor. She ignored me and carried on throwing popcorn at everyone, managing to hit Jess who was sat on the other side. She'd hit the boys a few times and I carried on warning her that if she threw popcorn again she'd get a bottle of coke thrown over her. Still, not taking my advice she carried on until the end of the film. For me, it wasn't so bad because I'd already seen the film but it was annoying for the boys because they'd not seen it before. I tried to ignore it throughout the rest of the film but when someone is throwing food at you, it's pretty difficult to try and focus on something else.

I turned myself away from Amy's direction so the popcorn hit my back. I rested my arm on the side of the seat and leant closer to Louis, who seemed open to me being closer to him. He nudged me a few times when the popcorn had hit us both and told me not to worry about Amy being so immature, but it was the fact that she wouldn't stop.

When I got out of the cinema, I flipped.

'Amy for crying out loud you ruined the whole movie! Why can't you just stop? I told you to stop but you never listen!' I said through gritted teeth, trying not to make a scene because that would be just plain embarrassing. I didn't let her interrupt me while I was ranting. Amy looked upset after I'd finished with her. Louis put his hands on my shoulder, and tried to calm me down.

'She's not worth it, trust me.' He said turning me round so I was facing him and had my back to Amy. She ran off somewhere and the rest of the group just stood there looking at me.

'Finally she might leave us alone now that you've flipped out on her,' Jess laughed, hugging me in a congratulations way. I felt bad, but Amy was annoying and shouldn't have done it.

We walked out of the cinema and unfortunately a group of girls noticed Louis, Harry and Liam. They started screaming and ran towards them. Jordan, Emily, Jess and I got out of the way before we could get trampled upon. It seemed to have stopped raining and it had brightened up a little but it was still overcast. With the crowds of girls circling the boys, I could barely see them. I managed to spot Louis signing a girl's t-shirt so I pushed my way over and grabbed his arm.

'I'll see you later,' I shouted to him over the screaming girls and all he could do was nod so I went to catch up with the girls who were escaping from the crowd as fast as possible.

'Well, that was a weird experience – nearly getting crushed by screaming girls. Makes me not want to become famous,' Jordan said, getting her phone out from her bag.

'Yeah, but you won't get crushed by screaming girls. You'll get crushed by screaming guys,' Jess giggled hysterically.

'Thanks for the positive thinking, Jess,' Jordan said. 'Oh crap!'

Yet again, Jordan had seen Josh sat in T.G.I. Fridays with the same people he was with earlier. And unfortunately this time, he'd seen her and was on his way up and out of the restaurant to talk to her. Jordan tried to walk away but he caught up with her.

Instead of trying to get in on the conversation, Emily, Jess and I stayed where we were and luckily, the boys had got rid of the screaming fans and made their way over to us.

'That was the shortest "later" I've ever known,' I said, as I turned round to face Louis, who couldn't help but smirk like an idiot. Jess saw Liam instantly and went to talk to him again. We stood there and waited for the argument Josh and Jordan had to blow over, when I checked my phone. It was a message from Jack, the guitarist from All Time Low. We'd got to know each other after I'd seen them last year and we became really close. He'd text me to say that the boys were coming to my house tomorrow for my birthday. I text him back and realised what the time was.

'Guys we better get moving. My mum is gonna go mental if we get home late,' I said to the girls and shouted to Jordan – who was standing on the other side of the road – who put her thumbs up in agreement. I turned to Louis who was looking at me already.

'I guess this'll have to be a longer "later", eh?' I said to him.

He laughed and said, 'Yeah, I guess you're right.' Jordan had just joined us and looked okay, I suppose. Not shocked at the fact she'd had an argument in the middle of the road with her ex, or the fact people had been looking at them, which was surprising. Jess was saying her goodbyes to Liam, and I was talking to Louis,

'Can we stay in touch?' Louis asked, playfully grabbing my phone off me, 'Actually, it was more of an instruction than a question.'

'Sure, why not? You're nice y'know. You're not like other guys who let the fame get to them. They pretend to be something they're not; you guys are different. Fame hasn't changed you guys,' I kinda wanted to carry on but rambling was never a good sign for me.

'Aw, thanks you're gonna make me blush.'

'You're such a child.'

'I know.'

'You're awesome.'

'Right back at ya.'

After we exchanged numbers, Louis pulled me into a hug, which was completely unexpected. Obviously I hugged him back as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. He smelled so nice, I wasn't sure that I wanted to let him go. When I pulled away, he smiled at me.

Liam had managed to get away from Jess without giving her any contact details. It was depressing to see them leave, but I'd had a great day and it was completely unexpected to have met them. When we had said our goodbyes, we piled back into Emily's car and Jess drove us back home. On the way back, Jess wouldn't shut up about what a great time she had with Liam which was only expected. Jordan kept complaining about Josh while texting her other boyfriend about what had happened earlier.

Jess dropped Emily off first and then parked outside the front of my house. The lights were still on which meant my mum was still up. I said goodbye to the girls and got my keys out of my bag. When I got in, I checked the clock hanging in the hallway.

8:00pm.

I groaned, rubbed my eyes and greeted my mum as I walked to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. We didn't talk much even though we stayed up until 11 because we both went to bed early (for us) as the boys from All Time Low were going to be here early in the morning.

I showered and got ready for bed and reflected on what happened today in my head. I text Jack before I fell asleep and I was about to drift when I my phone vibrated.

_It must be Jack. He replied back quickly, _I thought. When I looked at my phone, it was a number I didn't recognise. I read the text message and realised it was Louis,

_Hey you, it was really nice meeting you today. We should catch up sometime in the next few weeks; I'm in Weston next month if you wanna meet up?(: Louis xxx_

I smiled. I was too tired to text him back so I saved his number in my phonebook and slowly drifted off to sleep wondering what tomorrow was going to be like. I didn't bother waiting for Jack to text me back; I was just too tired.


	4. All Time Low turn up

I woke up in the morning to my brother yelling in my face that 'Jack, Alex Zack and Rian' were downstairs. My brother was adorable; he was only 4 -years-old but he was clever for his age. Apparently he had the reading skills of a 7-year-old.

I quickly showered and got dressed but didn't bother to look tidy. I was going to be in a bus for the next 48 hours and there would be everything I needed on there.

As soon as I walked downstairs I was crushed by a familiar lanky body. I hugged Jack so tightly I think I might have nearly killed him. I wanted to cry but I didn't. I smiled and kept my arms around his shoulders and he kept his hands around my waist. Jordan always said that I and Jack should get it on but it was just the fact that we were best friends and I never wanted to jeopardise the relationship I had with him. I never wanted to lose Jack as a friend; I could talk to him about anything and everything, he always understood and gave me the best advice. I really treasured our friendship.

'I've missed you so much,' Jack said when he finally let me go. 'You don't know how much I've missed you. I'm so glad you're staying with us.'

'Yeah, he hasn't shut up about you all tour,' Alex said, who stood up to greet me. I kissed him on the cheek when he hugged me which made him blush. Lisa, his girlfriend, didn't mind, she was a really nice person and let me get away with it.

'Zack!' I jumped on the biggest guy there. By big I meant really buff and the guy that worked out nearly every minute of every day. I rest my head on his shoulder as he gave me a hug. People would think that because he was so big he'd crush you but really, he was probably the gentlest person on that tour bus. Rian was the quietest but did greet me when I'd got to him. Rian was amazing, and it was hard to think that fans of the band could ever forget him. I never wanted to think of Rian as the last member of All Time Low, it wasn't fair just because Jack and Alex always got more attention than the others.

'How's it going?' I asked Rian, who'd moved up one the sofa to make room for me between him and Zack.

'It's going good; we've got everything ready in the tour bus. Jack and Alex have even got off their lazy asses to tidy it up so it's spotless.' Alex and Jack both scowled at Rian.

Mom was in the kitchen making them all coffee.

'Your clothes and toiletries are already on the bus. I packed it for you last night and don't worry, I haven't forgotten anything like you would.' She said, handing me two cups of coffee for the boys. The black one was for Rian and the milky one was for Jack.

After I gave Zack and Alex their drinks, the boys' tour manager Matt Flyzik, assistant tour manager Matt Colussy, lighting director Jeff Maker and merchandise manager Vinny Vegas came into the house and they all stayed for lunch and football matches on the Xbox.

'Guys we better get going, we've got to go to Dublin and according to Google Maps, it's gonna take about 8 hours. It's 7:00pm now so if we leave, it'll be 3:00am when we get there. That's if the traffic is flowing and there aren't any disturbances and we need to get some sleep. We'll have tomorrow and the day after when we get there to do sound check, make-up, clothes, stage and tuning. And because it's you guys, that WILL take two days.'

Flyzik was panicking. Flicking backwards and forwards through pages of notes, he wanted to get the boys on the road ASAP. I looked at the boys in approval of Flyzik's instruction as they got up. I kissed my mom and my brother goodbye and followed Jeff into the tour bus.

The tour bus was massive, kind of like the tardis in Doctor Who. It looked small on the outside but it was big on the inside. We went up the staircase to which lead to the front of the bus where Vinny was going to drive for the first shift. I turned and saw I was standing in one of the 2 living rooms. The whole bus had a marble floor. There were leather sofas and a massive TV with satellite and different versions of their CD's in different languages were piled on the floor. The kitchen was next, with food stuffed in the cupboards and fridge and opposite was the bathroom. I move towards the back of the bus and peeked into the eight bunks that were on each side of the bus. The first four were for Vinny, Jeff, Flyzik and Colussy, and the last four, the furthest to the back, were for Zack, Rian, Alex and Jack. The bunks were big enough to fit two people, not that they needed to for any reason. Jack had one of the biggest beds in the tour bus, much bigger than any of the others' and they were jealous. Once, Alex tried to pretend to fall asleep in Jack's bunk so he could steal it. Knowing Jack, Alex didn't get away with it. At the back of the bus was the second living room; there were more leather seats and a table where laptops and paper lay piled sky high. A 56" TV was mounted on the wall and under was an Xbox and a stack of DVD's were next to it. There was a cupboard each side of the TV for everyone to put their stuff in. It wasn't the first time I'd been in the tour bus, but I was amazed like I'd only seen it for the first time.

Someone poked me in the back and I spun around.

'You can share my bunk if you want, I don't mind. Your stuff is in the cupboard and toiletries are in the bathroom already. I took liberty of tending to it myself.' It was Alex who'd followed me to the back of the bus. It felt awkward, just the two of us after what happened. It wasn't so bad when I was around other people; it was just when the two of us were alone.

'Well actually,' I said, cautiously, 'I was planning on sleeping on one of the sofas instead of invading your privacy.'

Alex sighed and gave me an awkward smile, 'Look I know what happened hurt you and upset you, but I promise I won't do it again. You know what I'm really like and I wasn't like that.' Alex stepped closer to me, close enough that I could feel his breath on my neck when I turned my head away from him. Before I could say a word, Alex's head snapped up fast and he walked away. It turned to look at him and saw Jack who walked towards me and put his hands on my shoulders.

'Did he do anything? He didn't do anything, did he? Dick,' Jack muttered the last part to himself and looked away but I forced him to look back. Jack was the only other person who knew what had happened excluding Alex and I.

'He didn't do anything, Jack. All he did was apologise, like he's done 500 times before,' Jack's arms dropped back to his sides. 'But its fine because I'm not gonna let him make me feel awkward this tour. This tour is about All Time Low and not just Alex because it's about everyone who's involved and he's not going to ruin it.'

I seemed to have had Jack convinced, so we went back to the front of the bus where the rest of the guys were sat watching the TV. I had no idea what they were watching; they'd managed to get American TV over here so I didn't recognise it. I sat down next to Jack who put his arm round me. Rian said we acted like a couple but we always denied it.

Vinny spent the next two hours driving before he swapped with Jeff. Zack offered to take over but Jeff refused; he said that the boys 'needed their sleep' ready for first day of tour. Vinny managed to scrape some food from the fridge before Jack raided it after. The boys were stuffing their faces with popcorn because it was "popcorn night" on Tuesdays and were watching Insidious. Alex and Colussy spent their time tweeting their reactions to everyone, Flyzik and Rian were in the back playing Mario Karts and I was sat with Jack who was actually watching the film. Zack had gone to bed early, which was normal for him – he was the only guy who had any sense about rest.

After the film finished, and Jeff had swapped with Colussy, I decided to go to bed. Alex offered for me to share his bed again but Jack glared at him and said that I was going to share his bed. I tried to argue against sharing a bed but Jack made it clear that he wanted to share with me. I went into the bathroom, showered and changed into my nightclothes. Jack had already changed and was lying in the bottom bunk with his laptop.

'Scooch over,' I said, gently pushing his across. He moved out of the way to I could get closer to the wall, still sitting up with his computer while I tucked myself under the duvet. I glanced over at his Twitter page and saw some messages which he quickly replied to and closed down.

'Who was that?' I asked and at the same time yawning.

'Getting grief from the ex-girlfriend. She just won't leave me alone with all the abusive texts and messages,' he said, shutting his laptop down and putting in a drawer under his bunk.

'Get a restraining order,' I laughed, being half-serious. I'd been in contact with his ex, and she was not a nice person.

'I'm seriously considering it,' he replied, 'she's such a pain in the ass.' Jack moved so he was lying down and facing me.

'Let's not think about it, eh?' I said, poking his nose and smiling.

'Hey, leave my nose out of it,' he said, putting on his best angry face. 'I'll try not to. I don't want her to ruin the tour with her stupid texts.'

'She won't, trust me. I'll put her in her place. Now go to sleep, you need to be up early in the morning.'

I think Jack fell asleep before me, purely because I could hear him breathing heavily on my head as I pulled him closer to me. The problems with his ex were obviously playing on his subconscious mind as multiple times he woke up in the night.

I managed to sleep okay though. It was my birthday tomorrow, my 18th so I'd be able to drink in the bars with the guys. That was what I was looking forward to tomorrow the most.

I turned over to face Jack again and sighed. Tomorrow was going to be amazing and I wasn't going to let Alex Gaskarth ruin it.

Looks like Jack wasn't the only person with problems on his mind; conscious as well as subconscious.


	5. OMG it's my birthday

I woke up the next morning in an empty bed which only meant one thing; everyone was up. Jack was usually the last one to get up and now that I was lying in his bunk alone, that meant that no-one was still in bed... except me. I scrambled out of bed and ruffled my hair which stuck out in all directions. I heard laughter from the front living room, and luckily no-one spotted me going into the bathroom. I got in the shower, washed my hair and got dressed.

When I walked out, I bumped into someone and it was Alex.

'Louis, I'm sorry,' I said naturally, not attempting to look him in the eye.

'Louis? Are you delusional? It's Alex,' he said, looking me in the eye when I faced him. He meant the delusional thing as a joke but Alex pulling jokes right now was not so funny. He walked past me and into the bathroom to get dressed. I hadn't realised he was still in his nightclothes.

I knew exactly why I'd said that. It was the first time I'd thought of him since I left him a couple of days ago. Louis and I had a thing about physically bumping into each other and that's why I'd said it to Alex. I kind of missed him really; that day when we met was fun and I knew myself I didn't want it to end. Then I realised I had Louis's number so I ran back to the bunk and text him.

_Hey, I'm sorry I haven't text you in a couple of days, I've been with some friends and it's been kinda hectic. I'll text you again later; have a nice day (: xxx_

I locked my phone and saw Alex come out of the bathroom, rubbing his hair dry with a towel that sat on his shoulders. When I walked into the front living room the whole bus shook from the eruption of cheers.

'Happy birthday, Chloe!' they all yelled, patting me on the back and hugging me. I hadn't realised Lisa had turned up and she pulled away from Alex to hug me.

'Happy birthday, Chloe. Alex has the most amazing present for you outside but I'm not allowed to tell you what it is so I'm gonna have to keep quiet. Sorry.' We both just laughed. She was such a nice person; but fans of Alex hated her because they were jealous Alex had a girlfriend. I didn't know how to react to the fact Alex had got me a present, maybe it was a real apology

Before I knew it, I had been pounced upon by a familiar body. I stumbled but managed to stay standing as Jack pulled me into a hug and wrapped his arms around me. I couldn't help but smile at the fact that he always greeted me with a hug when he saw me, if it was days or months that he hadn't.

'Happy birthday, gorgeous,' he said, letting me go slightly but still holding on. I couldn't help it so I had to do it. I pressed my lips to his. He was warm, and inviting when he responded. It wasn't a love kiss, he was my best friend and I could never do that, and that's why I pulled away.

'That's for being the most amazing friend ever,' I praised as I eyed a stack of presents on the seats and table. 'Whoa, are these for me?'

Everyone nodded, and Rian put his hand out to invite me to open them. Alex had finally joined everyone as they watched me open my presents. From Vinny, I got a bagful of JAGK and All Time Low merchandise, Flyzik got me a £50 iTunes voucher and a bunch of codes to get discounts, Colussy teamed up with Zack and got me loads of CD's from bands like Simple Plan, A Day to Remember, You Me at Six, The Maine and Blink 182, Lisa bought me things like expensive make-up and accessories, and Rian gave me a massive framed picture with loads of signatures on it. Rian wasn't one for spending much money on anyone, so instead he found things people wanted for less money than anyone else.

'Oh my god, thanks guys!' I was literally speechless when I looked at the presents I'd been given. There were loads more but it was only little things I didn't bother to list.

Then it was Jack's turn to give me my birthday present. He handed me a small red box, it wasn't wrapped but what was inside it made every other present look second best.

When I opened the box, the shining nearly blinded me from the reflection of the sun.

It was beautiful.

It was a proper Pandora bracelet with black, blue and silver beads thread onto the chain. I picked it up and admired it before sliding it onto my wrist. There was one bead that stood out which was a red heart that had my name carved in the centre.

'Jack, it's... it's beautiful.' I stuttered, hardly managing to get my words out.

Jack pointed to the heart that was attached to the chain. 'I thought you'd like it. Spent months looking for something special for you and the heart is the really special part.'

I couldn't believe that I could've been in possession of something so amazing. I rolled the chain around on my wrist.

'Hey, what about my present?' Alex interrupted, poking my shoulder. I turned around and nodded to show that whatever it was he had got me, I approved of. Alex took a piece of black cloth and blindfolded me so I literally couldn't see a thing. I could sense that Jack was cautious but he let it continue. Alex led me out of the tour bus and round behind the back. I could hear more feet shuffling behind me so I assumed everyone else had followed me. All I heard next were gasps and whispers. I heard Rian whisper to someone, 'well if that isn't an apology present, I don't know what is.'

After that I really had no idea what Alex had got me until he'd taken off the cloth.

It was a freaking car.

There it was, clear as day, sat there, a car. Alex had got me a car for my birthday. I couldn't believe it. Before I knew it, I'd thrown my arms around Alex and hugged him tightly.

'Thank you, thank you, thank you!' I yelled, removing myself and exploring the car. It was spotless and amazing... and I loved it. Alex really had shown himself that he wasn't the same person that was shown before what happened. I looked at Jack, as if I needed approval but he just shrugged, smiled at me and slapped Alex on the back playfully.

'The MOT and insurance is all on me. When I signed the papers the costs are all being paid by me so you don't have to worry about it.'

After I'd happily looked at the car, we all went back inside but Alex pulled me away before I could step inside.

'Look, I'm sorry. After everything that happened, I wanted to make it up to you and that was it. Really, I am sorry,' He said, as I had my back against the tour bus. He kept his distance, knowing that if he came too close like he did last time, I'd freak.

'Alex, you know I've got nothing against you. I'm still trying to deal with it and bringing it up isn't really helping. Can we please just forget about it and have fun on this tour?'

Alex didn't like to argue, so he just nodded and escorted me back into the tour bus. The guys had gone to the rear living room to set up the Skype. I joined them and Alex sat next to Lisa who openly welcomed him.

'If Jeff can hurry up and sort it out,' Rian said loudly so Jeff could hear it, 'your family will be up on that screen in no time.'

As I waited, I admired my bracelet that I swore to Jack that I would never remove in my entire life. He saw and smiled at me from across the other side of the room.

When Jeff and Zack had finally set up the Skype on the Xbox, I saw my whole family on the screen. They all started singing happy birthday to me which was embarrassing and everyone else started to chant too. My mum showed me the presents that were in a neat pile in the corner of the room wrapped up in luminous wrapping paper. She refused to let me see what was inside and said I had to wait until I came back off tour. Finally, when my family had finished nagging on about pointless things to the band and their crew, they signed off Skype and started up Mario Karts again. Teaming up in pairs, Zack and Colussy were the best out of the lot. I was the reason Jack and I lost most of the time because I was terrible.

'Go to hell, Matt,' Alex yelled, as Flyzik pushed Alex off a mushroom. 'Oh fuck me. Fuck me.' Alex had just driven off the mushroom by himself this time. Jack screamed like a girl when his kart got squirted by ink and all I could do was laugh at them all.

We were about to turn it off until 10 more people invaded the bus.

The support acts for the tour had finally arrived; The Maine and We Are the In Crowd.


	6. The Maine and We Are the In Crowd arrive

'Hey guys!' Taylor Jardine screamed as she attacked everyone on the bus. She was the lead singer from We Are the In Crowd. Sitting on Rian, he grabbed the controller and started playing, absolutely thrashing the rest of the guys.

To avoid the awkwardness of not knowing the other two bands, I went back to the bunk I shared with Jack. I checked my phone for messages and realised Louis had sent me a text an hour ago. He said he was fine and wished me a happy birthday, which I was surprised he remembered. I wanted my privacy so I pulled the curtain and carried on texting Louis.

I was quite happily texting when someone pulled the curtain back.

'Why are you here and not partying?' the guy said. I recognised him as one of the singers from We Are the In Crowd. He was tall and skinny with long dark brown hair. He looked like a nice person; I just didn't want it to be an illusion.

'I just... I have a problem with meeting new people,' I said, shyly, giving him a slight smile. He nodded in agreement,

'I know how you feel. I'm not good with people either.' He said, returning the smile.

'But you're in a band, how can you be shy?'

'Well, I made music because I loved it and it was the only way I could get my feelings out. I didn't do it for the fame or the money but when people offer to sign you, it's one of those things that you can't refuse,' he flicked his hair back in place after it faltered a bit. 'C'mon, let's go,'

He put out his hand and I took it, like offering his hand for a dance at a Victorian ball.

'I'm Jordan by the way, from We Are the In Crowd.'

'Chloe, I'm just a friend of the boys'.'

We joined everyone at the front of the bus where they were talking stage sets, speeches and set lists. I'd expected it all to be sorted before a day before tour but I was obviously wrong.

'There she is! The birthday girl,' Jack shouted, quickly putting away his phone and standing next to me, arms around my shoulders. 'Let me introduce you to the guys; this is Garrett, Patrick, Jared, Kennedy and John who I think you've already met. They're The Maine and We Are the In Crowd is Taylor, Jordan, Rob, Mike and Cameron.'

Everyone said hi to me and wished me a happy birthday. They all seemed like nice people but there was still that one person who made the tour just under 100% perfect. Alex was sat in the corner ignoring Lisa who'd given up on him to go and talk to Taylor. I wish he'd just let everything go but he still insisted on bringing it up.

I spent the day going from tour bus to tour bus and messing around with everyone. I tried to avoid Alex by going into All Time Low's bus as least as possible but I knew I had to face it someday. Just not post-tour. The boys in the All Time Low were still at it with the Mario Kart; Rian kept demanding Zack for a rematch every time he lost against him.

Everyone was very welcoming to the bus; Taylor and John seemed to have stood out for me. They may have been the people that were mostly in the limelight as far as fame goes but they were really nice people.

I spent hours sat with the boys from The Maine, who were all sat in their bunks playing on their newly bought Nintendo 3DS', all connected playing Pokémon. After Jared has slaughtered everyone by winning every single game, everyone met up outside All Time Low's bus. I checked my watch and saw that it was 5:30pm. This time, I'd text Louis to say I was slow replying and text mom to say I was fine and I was having fun; anything that a teen would do to reassure her mother that I was fine.

Flyzik came out of the bus 10 minutes later with yet another clipboard full of paper and Jack and Rian soon came behind.

'Guys, let's go to Starbucks and get dinner and something to drink.' I forgot that Vinny was standing behind me and his sudden outburst made me jump. Colussy, Rian and Taylor ran into the van before anyone else to get the good seats while the rest of us stood with a delayed reaction. When we'd all fit into one van, Zack drove us all to the nearest Starbucks. As soon as we'd all got out, a girl had instantly spotted Alex and starting screaming. Alex's face went pale white and the coloured drained from his face. I was standing behind him next to Jack and I heard him mutter, 'this is what I've gotta deal with daily when people see me, dammit.'

I thought it was a bit out of line, I mean, if I didn't know the guys then I'd be screaming. Well, actually I'd be completely speechless and wouldn't be able to move but it still didn't get away from the fact that Alex was being a total jerk. It wasn't like him, really he wasn't like that like he'd said to me but something changed since I'd last seen him and it's shaken him up. I don't think what really happened last time has anything to do with what's wrong now.

As the three bands got attacked by yelling fans, the rest of us sneaked into Starbucks and ordered our drinks. After about 20 minutes of Colussy, Flyzik, Vinny, Jeff and I laughing our heads off at the boys, they finally managed to satisfy everyone and got them to leave them alone. When the drinks we'd ordered earlier arrived, the other went up to order theirs. Two girls were filming Jack and Rian stood at the counter, I really didn't understand why they didn't go and talk to them.

Jack sat next to me after he grabbed his drink and we all sat round the table, getting ready to discuss the plans for the summer tour. Then Flyzik's phone rang,

'Hello? Yeah, send it to Jeff when you're done. He can sort out the lighting to go with it. Okay, bye,' Flyzik put the phone down. 'Danny's finished with the intro to the concert and he wants the first song for you to play to be Do You Want Me Dead because he's used the first part as the introduction. He's called it Art of the State, there's very few words for you to remember Alex so he said it won't be a problem.'

Alex nodded.

Jeff coughed to make himself heard, 'I'm gonna have to go to the venue early tomorrow to look at the lighting and to work out what I'm doing. I don't want to mess up like I did last time.'

Jeff had once tried to improvise at an All Time Low concert and ended up pulling the plug on all the electrics. He was upset, but the boys forgave him because they knew that he was good at his job and that no-one could replace Jeff Maker as lighting guy.

'Colussy, for tour can you stay backstage and be my second pair of eyes for the boys? I'm gonna be onstage so I can't keep an eye on them while I'm there.' Colussy nodded to Flyzik's instructions but Alex interrupted them.

'Hey, we're not little kids, we can take care of ourselves.' Alex was very serious about that accusation but disguised it with a laugh at the end.

Following the plans for the next morning, the boys had gone into the convenience store to grab some alcohol for the bus party that they were going to throw later on tonight.

When we got back to the buses, everyone went their separate ways to get ready for the party. I climbed onto We Are the In Crowd's bus where they looked more like they were having a party of their own instead of getting ready for one. Rob, Mike and Cameron had finally decided to play Call of Duty instead of Mario Kart, which seemed a popular game for bands. Taylor was tidying around, it must've been hard being with a band full of guys with them being untidy.

'Hey, did you want any help? Looks like the boys have made a big mess.' I offered, already picking the cushions up from the floor.

Taylor just laughed, 'No I'm fine, thanks. You kinda get used to it after a while. Anyway, you're a guest, you shouldn't be tidying around for us lot. We get by,' I heard a loud eruption of cheers as Cameron slammed Rob into the ground on the PS3. 'At least they leave me in peace when I'm tidying up. You go and join them; they're ready for the party. I'll just be a minute and then I'll join you,'

I smiled at Taylor and put the last of the cushions on the sofa and went to join the boys. As I was walking down past the bunks, I tripped over something and fell flat on my face. God, I was so clumsy and it was kind of getting to be annoying.

'Oh my... crap Chloe, I'm so sorry- ow!' I turned round to see that Jordan had banged his head on the top of his bunk after the shock of me tripping over him. He rubbed his head and put his laptop back on his bunk.

'It's okay,' I said, scrambling up so that the guys in the back room didn't notice, 'I've got this thing about meeting people by tripping up, falling over or walking straight into them.' I said, breathing heavily.

'I guess I'm all three then.' He joked.

'Yeah I suppose you are. Are you okay? Is it bleeding?'

'No I don't think so. I'll be fine, come with me to the bus? The other's will be along in a minute,'

'Sure.' I agreed as we made our way over to the bus. As I approached the top of the stairs, I heard a conversation that I automatically stopped to hear, like my body wanted me to listen in.

'Dude, you've known her for long enough, just do it. People are getting bored of you talking about her all the time.' That was Rian's voice, but god knows who he was talking to.

'But what if she doesn't want to? What about the kiss? Did she mean it like that or was it just a friendly kiss? I don't know Rian; I'm scared I'll lose her.'

Then I realised who Rian was talking to.

Jack.


	7. Jack's birthday present

I stayed where I was as I heard more of the conversation but Jordan pushed me forward so I tripped into the tour bus.

'Oh, hey Chloe,' Jack said, surprised.

'Hey.' I said awkwardly. Rian gave Jack a look that urged him to go forward. Jack tried to push him back but Rian stood his ground. I stood there awkwardly until Jordan pushed me again so I was in the middle of the living room. I just stared from Jack to Rian and back again, waiting for some kind of explanation but nothing happened.

Alcohol was out on the kitchen counter; different types of spirits and beverages lay out. There was enough for about 30 people but All Time Low drank a lot on tour. I sat next to Jack, trying to pretend I hadn't heard what he said but it seemed like he'd sensed that something was wrong.

Soon, the whole tour bus was filled with the band members and people that I didn't recognise which were probably managers from the bands. People hadn't started drinking yet but it wasn't going to be long until they were. Alex seemed to be the centre of attention... which wasn't a surprise. Everyone grabbed a beer and Alex got ready to toast.

'So, before-tour celebrations are here and I just wanted to say that this tour is going to fucking awesome! So I think recognition is in order; to us, to the crew, to The Maine and We Are the In Crowd, and especially, to the fans that support us,' Alex raised his can of beer, 'LET'S PARTY!'

Everyone repeated the last part of Alex's speech and chugged their beers. Colussy finished first as always, he was never the lightweight. Everyone partied nearly all night until the early hours of the morning. Drink after drink, the night got even nicer as the music was turned up louder and all the worries were swept away. Now most of the guys had moved out onto the front grass outside to play baseball, it was only Jack, Rian and I left in the back living room playing Mario Kart.

'Dammit, Jack! Why does everyone beat me?' Rian moaned, practically giving up on making an effort.

'Because you're shit?' Jack joked. Rian did that laugh that gave the illusion he was genuinely laughing but I knew he was annoyed at Jack for some reason. Jack sighed,

'Okay, fine,' he said and then turned to face me, 'Chloe, can we go and talk some place private? I need to say something.' At that instant, I got up and walked out of the bus and past the guys who were playing a very drunken version of baseball. I knew what Jack was going to tell me; well I had a hunch but I was hoping it wasn't true. I heard my name being called by Jack who was running towards me.

'Chloe! Chloe! Why are you running away? Chloe!' he yelled, trying to catch up with me. He grabbed my waist and swung me around. 'Jack, what are you doing?'

'Sssh.'

That's when my mind was completely blown away. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think, I couldn't talk, purely because Jack's lips with on mine. The first time he'd done it when it had meant a way other than friendship, he pressed his lips hard on mine, making sure that I couldn't ruin the moment with my shock. After that, it was gentler, softer kisses. His fingers tangled in my hair and one hand around my waist, weirdly, I felt secure. I knew it was wrong but I wanted the moment to last.

Before I knew it, I'd pulled away before he could react. I ran away and left him standing there in shock. I know I shouldn't have but it was the only thing I could do at that moment in time. I'd panicked, not knowing how I was going to react and running away was cowardly, but there wasn't anything else I could do.

I think I heard him shouting my name as I was running, the boys who were still playing baseball stopped to look at me and back at Jack who was left standing in the dark. I knew I couldn't stay and share a bunk with Jack tonight so I went into The Maine's bus, furthest away from All Time Low's. The buses may have been massive, but you could clearly hear what was going on late at night.

The Maine's bus was fairly tidy, a few things lying around but it was nothing too surprising. In the Maine's bus it was like a mirror image of All Time Low's; the stairs lead to the living room and kitchen and the bathroom on one side. There was a separate door to the rooms with the bunks and after that was the 'champagne room' where the boys always watched movies and did work.

I heard footsteps from the outside of the bus and I knew that I was going to be caught so I tried to make up some excuse when John saw me.

'Hey, didn't think you'd be here. Were you looking for someone?' said John, who was standing in front of Patrick, trying to move out of the way to let him through.

'I was... looking for you actually.' I said.

_Wow, best excuse ever. I have no idea why I said that, _I thought. John looked surprised at the fact that I barely knew him and I wanted to see him. But to my surprise, John dived straight in.

'Sure, what's up?' John indicated for me to sit down next to him and so I did.

'It's Jack,' I said. As soon as I mentioned the name my heart raced faster and my lungs closed. I kind of choked on his name but I managed to keep myself together. John looked at me guiltily. 'Wait, you _knew_?'

'Well, yeah. Jack wouldn't shut up about you. He really likes you, y'know. I'm not exactly the person you should be asking about all this. Jack's really the person you should question; why don't you go and ask him?'

'I can't really talk to him at the moment,' I said, trying to meet his eyes and John looked back.

'What happened?'

'I overheard his conversation with Rian before I went into the bus a few hours ago. He was on about me, I think. And Rian was pushing Jack to move in on me. They stopped talking as soon as Jordan pushed me onto the bus. Then about an hour ago Jack said he wanted to talk to me so we went outside and he kissed me. I... I didn't know what to do so I came here.' I stuttered the last part, worrying what John might think that I came to see a guy I barely knew to talk about relationships.

'Chloe, I really think you should talk to Jack about this. As much as you don't want to, you'll get the truth and real answers. I can't go giving you advice and information if it's not true. It's gotta come out of Jack's mouth. He's your best friend, and you know what he's like. Just go and talk to him.'

Okay, John's advice convinced me very well. But I still wasn't happy that I had to go and talk to Jack about this.

'I'm not sure,' I said, but John told me otherwise, 'okay I'll go.'

I walked out and over to the bus where Jack was. Taylor, Jared, Patrick and Cameron were still out playing baseball while the other's had gone inside. Vinny was the centre of attention, babbling random things while Jeff, Matt, Alex, Zack and Rian were watching him, laughing. The others had obviously gone back to the tour bus to go to sleep. It was 11:00pm since I'd checked my phone a minute ago.

Jack was nowhere to be seen.

'Hey, guys, have you seen Jack?' I asked anyone who was listening.

'I'm not sure, but I think I saw him walking to his bunk. His curtain's drawn so he might be in there.' Alex said, pointing drunkenly toward the space with all the bunks. I moved there quickly, Lisa was literally on top of Alex at that point and I didn't want to sit there and witness what they were going to be doing.

I moved to the back of the bus where what Alex said was right. Jack's bunk's curtains were closed but there was no movement or noise.

'Jack?' I asked, looking like a complete fool talking to an inanimate object.

No answer.

'Jack?'

Still no answer.

'Jack, look I know you don't really want to talk to me after I ran away, but I was shocked. Please just listen to this; I know it's really hard for you right now, and I understand that, but you're my best friend and I never want to jeopardise that. I don't want us thinking we can be more than what we are now because at the end of the day, if we try, and if we fail, we'll never be the same again. I love you, Jack, and I don't doubt that for a second but I don't want to lose you,' I started to crack up, the tears were streaming down my face as I muttered the last word, 'ever.'

'Why are you talking to my bunk, you nutter?'

I twisted round in shock to Jack standing right behind me. Maybe, hopefully, he'd heard what I said so I didn't need to repeat it.

'I... I thought you were in there. I thought you were ignoring me,' I said as I grabbed his hand he offered and pulled me up. 'That's why I said that stuff here so I didn't disturb you or make things worse.'

Jack gave me a sympathetic smile, 'Do you wanna go somewhere quiet?'

I nodded and he led me down and out of the bus and into the field the guys had been playing baseball. They'd left now, and had gone back to the bus to make as much noise as possible. The music from each of the buses clashed and made a horrid racket but that wasn't a problem because we didn't care. Jack and I sat down, cross legged, on the grass facing each other.

What I did next was confusing; it was either fate or pure sanity.

'Chloe, I need to explain some-'

'You can tell me in a minute. It's time you shushed.'

And then I pressed my lips to his.


	8. Promises

I didn't know what I was doing. Really I didn't, but it was one of those moments when it just felt right to do so. Jack never protested against what I did, instead he responded like any person would do. Okay I admit it, kissing this boy was perfection; his lips were so soft, so gentle and his kisses meant something. Even if we'd regret it later, they'd still mean that Jack and I had something, something special that no-one could take away and the kisses were just that.

I didn't want to pull away from him, but I knew I had to. My hands wrapped themselves around his shoulders, as I pulled him closer, making the kiss deeper. Jack normally had his hands round my waist or shoulders and now was no different. His arms snaked around my waist, pulling me even closer toward him. I knew that it wasn't going to go further than kissing, Jack wasn't like that; he'd never force anyone to do anything they didn't want to do. When we pulled away, I could help but laugh at what came next.

'I wish you could see your face right now,' Jack said, with a cheesy grin on his face.

'Why?' I asked.

''Cause you're grinning like a fool.' He replied.

'AND WE'RE SITTING ON YOUR KITCHEN FLOOR, ON A TUESDAY AFTERNOON! Well... it's actually evening. And you're sitting on grass... outside. But at least it's Tuesday!' Alex yelled out of one of tour bus' windows, giving Jack thumbs up. Jack just laughed and flipped him off.

'Ignore him, he's drunk and being stupid.' Jack said, laughing then looking at me.

'Jack, I-' he covered my mouth to shut me up.

'Hey, you've had your little speech talking to my curtains,' he said, 'now it's my turn.' Jack trusted me to keep quiet and removed his hand from my mouth. He took my hands in his and stroked them lightly, like he never wanted to let go. I let him hold onto them, I could sense he felt secure as he started his speech,

'These past few years have been some of the best years in my entire life. That one night when I met you changed my life; you've been there for me through everything, no matter how much went on you were there for me and I'm grateful. You're amazing and so special to me. No-one is perfect but you're perfect for me. We're like twins and I know you're on about jeopardising our relationship but I promise you, if it doesn't work out, we'll always be the best of friends. I make this oath to you Miss Chloe that I will always be near you and I will always be there for you when you need me,' I started laughing at the last part but Jack gave me a stern look, 'however soppy all of this stuff sounds, I mean each and every word; I love you and I won't ever stop loving you.'

To be fairly honest, I was very shocked. All I did for 5 minutes was just stare at Jack as he searched me for any signs of movement. He'd finally got my attention when he shook me.

'Chloe, answer me?' Jack said, dropping his hands down by his sides.

'I... I... I don't know,' I said, my brain was swimming with questions. How long had he liked me? Why hadn't he told me before? Was this the reason why Alex was like he was? What about the reactions of family and friends? Did I love him back?

The answer to the last question was the question I wanted the answer to the most. Like all the other questions, the answers were unknown but the last one was the decision I had to make myself. I loved him, of course I loved him, how could I not? But I didn't know whether the love for him inside of me was as best friends or not. The boy meant everything to me and I never wanted to lose him, he understood that, but did he really want to put all of that on the line just to see if we could be more that what we already were? But if I wanted to risk it, would it really work? Jack really wanted it and kissing him felt right; I just hoped that everything would be fine with him and he didn't change somewhere down the line.

Before I knew what I was doing, I'd started talking and didn't think once about the boy I'd met back home.

'Jack Barakat, you mean everything to me and I'm going to risk everything to be with you,' I said, taking his hands in mine instead of the other way around. After I said that, everything felt right.

I looked at the sky. The night was beautiful; the sky was a dark blue and cloudless. The stars were shining and the ones that I and Jack were sat under were shining brighter than all of the others. There was the fresh smell of the outside, the grass that had only just been cut and the trees swayed in sync with the wind. It was cold, but I felt warm.

I brought my knees up to my chest and embraced them. Jack crawled over to me and whispered in my ear, 'This was my proper birthday present' before throwing grass in my face. When I'd finally got rid of the grass that was going down my shirt, I managed to grab some of the freshly cut grass and chased Jack around the field, trying and failing to catch him.

Finally, I managed to grab him and throw grass down his t-shirt. That had done it. He was after me. I ran toward the bus and up the stairs before Jack had grabbed any more grass.

The bus was quite quiet. Flyzik and Vinny had passed out on the sofas; Jeff was sat in the bottom left hand bunk on his laptop and Alex, Lisa, Rian and Zack were nowhere from where I could see. Colussy was sat on the sofa with his laptop and said hi as I walked past.

Jack came from behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist and smiled at me when I looked at him.

'C'mon, bedtime. Gotta get up early tomorrow for first day of tour.' Jack said as he pulled me toward his bunk. Our hands clasped, we opened the door to the second living room where the rest of the band were. Rian and Zack were watching a movie while quietly sipping water to ease the pain of the hangover they were going to have in the morning. It must have been awkward for them because Lisa and Alex were making out on the sofa right opposite them. Jack only opened the door to tell the guys that we were back.

Jack closed the door behind us as he let me lie on his bunk first but he didn't join me.

'You get ready for bed here and I'll go in the bathroom,' he said, closing the curtain and walking off to get his stuff.

When Jack left, I changed into my nightclothes and pulled the covers over me. I threw my clothes to the end of the bed and waited for Jack to come back. It felt right, being with Jack. I didn't know what the others would think but my first thoughts were that they weren't going to like it – especially my mom. I knew I wanted to stay with him, he meant so much to me and I was willing to put all of what we had on the lifeline. He obviously thought that it was going to work because he was the one that made the first move but I still wanted answer. I didn't think that now was the time, we were happy and it was my birthday; I didn't want to ruin it.

I heard movement from outside the bunk and slid the curtain back to see who it was. I saw Zack climbing up on the bunk above and and Rian's foot slid into the bunk above the empty one which was Alex's. Lights were still on in the front living room which meant Colussy and Flyzik were still up but it looked like Jeff and Vinny had gone to bed.

Jack came out the bathroom and went to the back of the bus which was now empty to put his things in the closet. When he came back, he got into the bunk and wrapped his arms around me. He was wearing an old t-shirt and some pyjama bottoms. We led there for ages, not saying a word to each other and it wasn't awkward at all. His eyes glistened as he stared, like he was crying but I didn't want to ask. I was about to fall asleep when Jack sat up; well sat up as much as you can when the bunks are quite low. He put his arm on the pillow and rested his hand on the side of his face.

'First day of tour tomorrow, I don't think I can sleep,' he said. I ruffled his hair to make it even more of a mess than it already was. I don't think it would've made any difference because he styled it like that anyway.

'Just sleep 'cause otherwise you'll just be falling asleep on stage,' I laughed, imagining Jack slumped in the corner snoring.

'I'm not gonna fall asleep, when have I ever done that?'

'Maybe that time when you sat down after the first phase of your set and Alex had to pour water over your head to wake you up?'

'I don't remember that.'

'Of course you wouldn't, you were also drunk when it happened.'

'But... okay, fair point.'

Jack moved so he was back to lying down facing me. I turned over to facing the wall and Jack put his arm round me waist. I could feel his breath on my neck which gave me goose bumps but I was comfortable. His grip tightened on my waist as I fell asleep. I could tell he really meant what he said and I believed him.

As I fell asleep I heard the words I'd felt I'd always wanted to hear from him;

'I love you.'


	9. First day of tour

I'd woken up to the first day of tour early this time and everyone was still asleep. Jack was still fast asleep but from the noise around me, the others were up.

'Oi guys, can you give me a hand taking the stuff into the venue?' I heard Flyzik's voice asking whoever was up at the time. There was movement from Zack's and Rian's bunk but not enough for Flyzik to be talking to them. I heard Jordan, Taylor and Cameron's voice which meant the other bands were up and unpacking the buses. I leaned over Jack who was still snoring and pulled back the curtain. The light made my eyes react and I rubbed them and looked up.

Alex's curtains were still closed but Zack and Rian were hanging over the edge of their bunks.

'Morning,' I yawned to both of them.

'Morning, Chloe,' Zack said, smiling as he hung of the edge of his bunk again so I could see his face. Rian managed to yawn a morning after wiping his eyes. I glanced back at the bunk I'd slept in and saw that Jack was stirring.

'Should I wake him up?' I asked the guys who instantly moved to see Jack snoring. They both laughed.

'Might as well,' Rian said, 'He's gotta get up at some point and he always needs the bathroom when we arrive at the venue. I'm surprised he didn't when we arrived yesterday,'

'Thanks for that, Rian,' I looked back into the bunk to see Jack sat up with even more messed up hair. He looked at Rian but ended up laughing, 'Alex is still asleep? Lazy shit.'

'Oh hello,' I said, moving back into the bunk and jumping on him. 'How did you sleep?'

'Much better now that you were with me,' Jack said, tangling his fingers in my hair and giving me a kiss. My day had started off great already. He was such a loved up puppy and it was adorable. 'Let's wake Alex up. This will be funny; he's always moody when he wakes up.'

I led back where I'd been sleeping and Jack leaned out of the bunk. I did the same and looked around. Flyzik and Vinny were taking the equipment from the bus outside and into the venue. They didn't say a word to the boys as they were so busy. I turned to the back room and saw Jeff was filming the guys waking Alex up. As Jack leaned out of the bunk he pulled back Alex's curtains. God knows where Lisa was because Alex was on his own. Alex had his back to everyone and was still asleep.

Jack then started poking Alex in the back.

'Hey, Alex get the hell up, it's first day of tour. Oi, first day of tour,' Jack continued poking him until he started to stir. Alex turned his head to look at the guys who were literally on top of him, groaned and led back down again. Jack turned and nodded at the others and I think I went deaf after that.

'GET UP ALEX!' they all yelled at the top of their lungs; Zack's voice was the loudest which was surprising because Zack barely spoke. Alex got up after that and everyone went to work getting ready for the first gig they were going to do.

Everyone took turns in showering and getting dressed. Jack got in the shower last as usual because his ex was still sending him abusive texts and messages via Twitter. He's spent most of his time trying to get her to leave him alone. As Jack got in the shower, I helped Vinny get the merch table up, Jeff sort out the lighting and Flyzik set up the stage. When I got back to the tour bus, Zack, Rian, Alex and Flyzik were sat down drinking a beer each. I sat in the corner next to where Jack would usually sit, who was still in the shower. Jeff was sat in his bunk (again) on his laptop and Colussy and Vinny were in the venue. I hadn't seen The Maine or We Are the In Crowd all day.

'Not playing Mario Kart then, boys?' I asked, as I got myself a drink, non-alcoholic, after the hangover I was suffering.

Alex shook his head as he took a swig of his beer. 'Nope, gotta get ourselves psyched up for the show tonight. That means drinking, drinking, messing around, drinking-'

'And more drinking,' Rian finished for him, then turned to face Alex, 'we know what you're like Alex; always drinking.'

I laughed and drank my extra large Capri-Sun that I'd found stashed away in the fridge. Rian noticed what I was drinking and look at me blankly.

'You know Jack's gonna go mental when he realises you've drank his last Capri-Sun.' He scolded jokingly, he knew that Jack wouldn't mind so I played along with the joke,

'I'm Jack's girlfriend; I'll just buy him another one. I'm sure he'll live,' I said proudly, sitting up straight and sticking my nose in the air. Everyone on the bus laughed which was a surprise, because no-one found me funny.

Flyzik looked over his laptop to say, 'He's happy y'know. Really he is. I woke up last night and he was awake, just staring at you. I'm glad you guys are together because-'

'I think we're all happy you're together,' Rian piped up.

'Yeah, he doesn't shut up about you at all. It's just Chloe Chloe Chloe, a bit of band and a bit of ex-girlfriend, but it's mainly just you,' Zack said.

'Jack still talks about his ex-girlfriend?' I said, taking another sip of my drink and setting it down on the table beside me.

'Well, yeah. I mean, she's a pain in the ass and that's all he talks about. I think by talking about it, he expects it to go away but she still tries to talk to him through everything and anything.' Zack replied.

'Can't he just block her and delete her number? I mean, if he doesn't like her, then why doesn't he just ignore her?' I hated asking so many questions and it made me look desperate but I've always asked questions to get other people's side of the story.

'He can't really do that, and I think Jack should tell you instead of us lot because even he hasn't even told us the full story and we're not sure.' Rian said, looking over Flyzik's shoulder to see what he was doing.

I nodded and the boys started their own conversation while I sat there drinking my drink. Alex hadn't said much all morning and it was 11:30am now. I checked Jack's phone that was beside just to make sure and I saw he had a text. For iPhones, the texts came up on the screen and it was from his ex and, my god, it filled up the whole screen:

_Jack listen, you need to sort yourself out because if you don't, I will. I know what I did was wrong and it hurt but I didn't mean it. I never meant any of it and you know it. I still love you and you KNOW you love me back. I don't care if you're happy without me but you know your new girl is just a rebound girl. She means nothing to you and you're just using her. You can't ignore me forever and sooner or later you're going to come running back to me because you're heartbroken that she's dumped you for someone less pathetic as you. Get used to the fact you still love me and you will never get away from me that easily. Jasmine._

I was fuming. How _dare _she accuse Jack of being in love with her and calling him pathetic? She obviously didn't know him when they dated and calling me those names, calling me a rebound girl, was making her look pathetic. I pretended to ignore the text message but I was boiling inside. Did I leave it or did I question him when he got out the shower?

At that moment, Jack came out with a towel around his waist and a toothbrush in his mouth. I avoided eye contact with him but he went to the back of the bus to get dressed. Alex got up and shut the door so Jack could get changed in privacy. I decided to start a conversation with Alex even though he seemed very anti-social with everyone today.

'Hey, Alex, did you sleep okay last night? I heard a lot of moving and talking,' I said to him, as I twisted my body away from Jack's phone. Alex shifted slowly like he had something to hide.

'I'm surprised you didn't hear shouting. It was me and Lisa arguing on the phone. She accused me of cheating because I wasn't that lovingly towards her earlier last night.' He said, putting emphasis on the "lovingly" part.

'What happened? I didn't hear any shouting,' I said. Jack's phone vibrated again. I didn't bother looking; I knew it was from Jasmine. Alex shifted again nervously but tried to make it not look too obvious as Jack walked in calmly. Again, I avoided eye contact and told him bluntly, 'You have like, 689 text messages.'

'Really? I don't think I can hold that many texts.' Jack said. I don't know if he was playing along with the joke or genuinely had no idea. He sat next to me and read the text that I had read. His reaction was not what I expected. Jack got up and walked out of the bus. Just like that. Everyone stopped what they were doing and 5 pairs of eyes followed Jack until he disappeared from sight. The 4 pairs of eyes looked back at me, vacantly.

'What?' I said, looking at Flyzik and Rian, then back at Alex and Zack who had both been very quiet. 'It wasn't me. He hasn't said anything to me.'

The guys just shrugged and went back to what they were doing. I sighed and went to the bunk to get my phone. I had a message from Jack:

_Come outside._


	10. Shocking news

I turned my phone off and walked out of the bus without a word to the others. I so desperately wanted to know what was wrong with Jack and if I had to force him to tell me, I'd do it. The worst thing that could happen is partners keeping things from you at the start of a relationship and I trusted Jack to tell me. When I got outside, I saw Jack leaning against the bus. His eyes were red and his face was wet, he'd been crying. He had his phone in his hand and was staring at it with no expression on his face whatsoever. I didn't know how to react, whether to leave him or to go over and ask him what happened. I decided to go over.

'J- Jack, what's wrong?' I asked, standing opposite him and wiping the tears from his face. Damn, he looked so cute but it wasn't the right time.

'She's coming here. She's coming on tour and I can't stop her.' he'd only just managed to get the words out between the quiet sobs he let out every now and again. I was frozen, I'd never seen him cry before and it was heartbreaking.

'Jack, I- I don't know what to do.' I said, lowering his phone and putting it back in his pocket. His hand was still in the same position for a bit but he managed to let it fall by his side again. In that instant, he pulled me closer and kissed me. It was a bit wet from the tears but I kissed him back, wrapping my arms around his waist trying to make him feel secure. His hands lifted up to cup my face and he kissed me harder. Then he hugged me, tightly, like he was scared. But how could he be scared of his ex girlfriend?

'I saw that text she sent you,' I blurted out from over his shoulder. He didn't move and I could barely hear him breathe. 'Jack, you can't put up with the crap you get from her.'

'I have no choice; you don't understand what she's like. I mixed with the wrong sort and got myself into this shit. I don't want you involved so please, so my sake and for our relationship, stay out of it. Stay out of her way, stay out of her life, it's the best thing. Don't get involved with it like I did.' He kissed me on the forehead and starting walking away.

'Where are you going, Jack?' I said to the back of his head that was slowly getting smaller.

'For a walk. I don't want to be around her when she arrives.' He shouted back to me without turning round. I sighed and went back into the bus.

'What's eating Jack then, Chloe?' Alex asked with a mouthful of food. Flyzik had cooked lunch and I helped myself to pancakes, which were basically the only thing he could cook and that was because he'd got the premade ones and cooked from the instructions on the back of the packet. I sat down and started munching on the pancakes which weren't so bad but it still doesn't beat homemade ones. After I finished my second mouthful, I replied to Alex who was waiting patiently for my response.

'Jasmine. She's coming on tour and she won't take no for an answer. She's coming today and she's coming now.' I said angrily, taking another mouthful of the food.

Zack dropped his fork. '_Now? _The bitch has got a cheek.'

'Yeah, she's got two and all they're good for is screaming abuse and sucking guys off,' Alex scoffed, slamming his fork on the table, 'if that bitch even comes close to this bus I'll see to it myself that she gets banned from the venue.'

'You can't do that Alex. We may be the famous guys who have a lot of privileges, but you can't ban her until she's broken the law or done something to one of us. So technically, she has a right to do what she wants.' Rian said, getting up and washing his dishes in the sink before drying it and putting it back in the cupboard.

'I swear I'll kill her. I swear,' Alex muttered, shoving the last few mouthfuls of his pancakes in his mouth. 'She's backstabbed, fucked over, betrayed and destroyed my best friend and she thinks I'm not going to do anything when she turns up? She's as good as dead.'

'Alex, don't! Don't ruin the tour by doing that because you'll look bad which will make the band look bad and that'll give her even more of a reason to backstab the lot of us.' I argued, passing Rian who sat in the seat next to where I was sitting to wash up the dishes.

'I can't just sit back and watch, Chloe, I have to do something about it.' Alex complained.

'Well, when the time's right, Alex. You can't just blow up on her as soon as she gets here. Time will do its things, trust me.'

'You sound like some old fortune teller.' Rian laughed, pretending he had a crystal ball in his hand. Zack got up from the table he was sitting at and grabbed the bottle of ketchup from the fridge. I really didn't want to see what happened next when Zack grabbed a fork and squirted ketchup onto it and swallowed it without anything else. I flinched and looked away as he did it again.

'That's gross, Zack.' I said.

'It's great,' He replied, taking one last spoonful and putting the bottle back in the fridge again. 'Ketchup is the best.'

Flyzik had been particularly quiet during the conversation, purely because he'd been sat on the laptop for the past hour but now he shut it down and looked like he was in the conversation. Suddenly, the whole atmosphere in the room changed when he walked in. Jack came in in not so much a worse state than what I'd seen him in, but he still looked terrible. The boys stopped what they were doing and just stared at him.

Zack tried to look busy by clearing the kitchen area but Jack could sense it. 'Guys, I'm fine just do whatever you were doing, I'm not stopping you.'

He slumped into his bunk and closed the curtains without another word. Alex widened his eyes and pointed to Jack's bunk.

'Me?' I hissed, leaning forward. Alex nodded. I looked to Rian for back-up but he just shrugged. 'Fine.'

I marched over to Jack's bunk and sat outside it. Bus rules were that when someone had their bunk closed, you weren't allowed to do anything that would invade the privacy. Obviously that rule went out the window when Jack had woken Alex up this morning but I was determined to keep the rules valid.

'Jack, I know you're in there so I'm not going to be talking to a curtain like a retard like I did yesterday. Look, you've got the guys behind you and Jasmine isn't going to touch you. We're all making sure of that and you're not gonna be hurt like before. I understand there are issues you're still uncomfortable with and I respect that but just please try to cheer up. You've got a tour starting and the fans will be looking for that humorous Jack Barakat they see on YouTube.'

Jack pulled back the curtain. He just looked at me for a moment and then hid himself in his bunk again.

I sighed. 'Jack...'

This was it. I pulled back the curtain myself and stared him square in the face. 'Jack Bassam Barakat; get out of here and go party with the boys. Don't make me drag you out here.'

Jack glared at me and finally got out of the bunk with his phone attached to him still. I went back into the living room where Colussy, Jeff and Vinny had finally joined them. They were having a conversation about the set list when everything went silent when Jack came from behind.

'Mate, don't worry about her, she won't come anywhere near you and if she does, she's gone.' Alex said. Jack smiled at Alex which gave him reassurance. I twined my fingers with Jacks and smiled at him.

'That's it guys! Everything's done and we're now free for time.' Flyzik yelled happily, slamming his laptop screen down, nearly trapping Rian's fingers. As the guys cracked open the beer, I went over to see the others who had been quiet since last night. As I boarded The Maine's bus, it was still quiet and the only thing I heard was the tip-tapping of someone on a computer. It looked like Garrett was the only one up.

'Hey, Garrett,' I said, sitting in the seat opposite, 'where are the others?'

'Believe it or not, they're all still asleep in their bunks. If you look, you can see John's hand sticking out of his bunk. It's the top left one.' He glanced up from whatever he was doing and moved his head in the direction of the bunks. I ran to the bunk that Johns arm was sticking out of and poked him.

'Hey, Garrett, is he ticklish?' I whispered to him. He turned his head and nodded. That gave me the idea to wake John up. I tickled his hand lightly and he twitched. I did it again and he shot up and opened the curtains.

'Hey, I'm sleeping.' I pretended to be angry with me, 'dammit, I can't be angry with you for long can I?'

'Nope,' I replied, 'get up, man. It's 1:00pm and you've all gotta get ready. I'm not doing your managers job for him.'

'Okay, okay I'm up. Guys get off your asses we've got work to do!' John managed to yell as he jumped from the top bunk. Everyone stirred and groaned, asking why they had been woken up. Kennedy cursed when he checked his phone and zombie-walked his way to the bathroom. Damn, these boys were lazy.

We Are the In Crowd's bus wasn't so bad; Cameron was still asleep but he got after Mike jumped on him. Taylor was yet again tidying up after the boys. As I stepped out of their bus and got ready to go back onto All Time Low's, on the phone to Jess, I was interrupted rudely by someone.

'Hey, you must be Chloe. I'm Jasmine.'

Oh shit.


	11. Still the bitch Jack knew

She wasn't exactly how I imagined her; she looked more fake in real life than she did in pictures. She stood in front of me, towering tall like she had some kind of dominance over me. She had long, platinum blonde hair that fell down her back like Rapunzel, and her face was caked in make-up. I could hardly believe that Jack had even attempted to date her; she was completely wrong for him. You could clearly see that she'd had ridiculous amounts of plastic surgery and, my god, she looked like a skank.

I had no idea what to say to her. Whether I should start on her already and give the clear impression that I hated her or to play it nice and give the illusion that I liked her when I didn't. I just decided to wait until I had to improvise... which was now.

'Um... hi,' I said, trying to push past her but she stood in my way. 'Do you mind?'

'Oh, sorry.' She replied, giving me a fake smile and stepping out of the way. I walked past her as fast as possible for avoid eye contact and stormed into the bus, shutting the door behind me. I ran up the stairs to see just Alex, Rian, Zack and Jack sat in the front living room watching the TV. I sat myself next to Jack and had only just managed to catch my breath after holding it as soon as I'd seen Jasmine.

'She's here.' I said, hanging my head, and checking my phone. Surprisingly, no texts.

Alex spat out his drink over the table, '_already?_'

'Yes, Alex, already, she's outside the bus now,' I sighed, fiddling with string on my hoodie, 'I think she's looking for you, Jack.

I said the last bit bluntly, acting like I couldn't care less but Jack knew that I did. He put his arm round me and I buried my face in his body. Jasmine had only been here less than 15 minutes and she was already making me feel like crap. Jack sighed and went outside and left me alone with the others. I stared out of the window for a minute before Zack came and sat next to me.

'Hey, it's gonna be okay, Jack knows what he's doing.' Zack reassured me and even though we were kind of having a heart to heart, I knew I'd look vulnerable if I broke down in tears. So instead, I just huddled up to him and stayed there. Alex and Rian were still watching the TV but they weren't listening, they were just watching the moving pictures.

'Hey look, we're behind you on this one, she's not gonna make any kind of moves on anyone.' Alex said without turning his head away from the screen.

'You can't guarantee that, guys. I know I may not know much about her but she looks and sounds like a bitch.' I hissed angrily.

At that time The Maine piled onto the bus and John nearly sat on me. Jack followed behind on his own, which wasn't what I'd expected. I hoped he'd told Jasmine to fuck off but that obviously wasn't the case because I saw her walk round the back of the bus and into the venue 5 minutes later.

'Afternoon guys, Chloe managed to get us up otherwise we'd of ended up being late.' John said, slapping my leg jokingly. I punched him in the arm.

Flyzik came onto the bus and that's when mayhem broke out. The next few hours consisted of people going in and out of all three tour buses, taking things off and onto the buses and into the venue and making phone calls because the guys who had All Time Low's acoustic guitars were stuck in traffic and wouldn't be arriving until half an hour before set started. Colussy seemed more annoyed than Flyzik, wandering around onstage and in the dressing rooms and yelling at Jack to stop tearing the venue apart by knocking the tiles off the ceiling. After having fun hanging from the pipes in the ceiling, the boys dressed up in women's clothes which they'd bought (trust me, don't even ask) and were prancing about in the venue.

I walked in with the real clothes they were going to were that Vinny gave me; I thought I might as well make myself useful instead of standing around waiting.

'Guy's come on. Kids are gonna be coming in about an hour and you're not even ready.' I threw the shirts at Alex who was wearing a mini-skirt, a tank top and heels.

'You're such a killjoy,' Alex complained, throwing the shirts back at me, 'c'mon, when have we ever been late for a show? Wait, don't answer that. Okay, we'll get a move on.'

When they had finished prancing about, they got dressed and were ready to go on stage. I stood in front of the crowd in the venue and watched The Maine and We Are the In Crowd perform to the screaming fans. I took a load of photos and videos and wandered backstage to see what the guys were doing before they were let loose on stage. As per usual, they were drinking and messing around; that was classic All Time Low. Alex and Jack were in the bathroom styling the last strand of hair and Rian was drumming randomly on one of the sofas. Zack was tuning his own bass guitar in the corner, one of the jobs ticked off the list for the crew unlike Jack and Alex's guitar's that were tuned for them. It was mainly Jack, because he hadn't tuned one for three years.

'Hey Jack, I fancy toast.' Alex produced a coat hanger, deodorant, lighter and a piece of bread when they came back into the room. Jack laughed and grabbed the coat hanger and bread. Forcing it onto the hook of the hanger, he hung it in front of Alex who lighted the deodorant and aimed it at the toast.

'Two more?' he didn't really ask, it was more like making everyone aware he was going to set fire to the deodorant another couple of times. After he'd done it, Jack felt the toast,

'Ha, that's toasted.'

'Crispy.' Alex said, just making sure.

I laughed and shook my head; these guys were much funnier in person. Jack walked over to me and wrapped his arms round me.

'You smell nice,' I said, nuzzling his neck.

'You'll think the complete opposite when I come off stage in two hours.' He laughed, tickling my sides.

'Do not do that because I will bite you, boy.'

'Oh really? I'm not a boy, I'm a man. I can drive.'

'Just because you can drive doesn't make you a man and we never let you drive Jack.' Alex smirked as he walked past, pulling a flannel shirt over the Glamour Kills one he had on. Jack tickled me again and I did what I promised I'd do to him if he tickled me.

'Shit, man. You bite _hard_,' he pulled away and rubbed his neck then poked me in the stomach. He went to bite me back when an annoying voice made him pull away.

'Ooh, sexy, a love bite. I gave Jack loads of those and I think he still has the scars. Not to mention the bites on his-' Jasmine started before she was interrupted by me.

'Yeah, don't mention it. I don't want to know about the way you seduced him to get what you want. Now if you don't mind, I have a concert to attend and merchandise to buy.' I said, pushing past her and purposely going straight into her arm on my way. I could feel her eyes on my back as I walked away. As she turned back to face Jack, I turned round and looked at him, giving him the 'get her out of here right now'. He nodded and I walked away.

God, she was a nightmare on legs. Sauntering around like she had some god-given right to everything that wasn't hers and it wasn't like she was something special. None of the guys wanted her here and she knew that; she just wanted to ruin tour for all of us. And hearing about the fact that Jack had moved on and had another girlfriend, she wanted to fuck him over and ruin our relationship. Well she wasn't going to and Jack and I were happy together. Even Alex had threatened to kick her out after what happened between us. The guy was really making an effort to put things right and I respected that. I wanted to be close to him like I was before; because it was awkward between us, and the others didn't know, that made it worse.

I went back to my position at the front of the stage as the boys got up on stage. When the curtain fell the whole venue erupted with screams and yells. The girls immediately started making their way to the front of the stage, trying to get a glimpse of the guys and the guys started a mosh pit in the centre. The guys opened with Art of the State and Do You Want Me Dead like Danny had told them. I went to stand by the side of the stage after the first phase of the set was done when the security guard stopped me.

'Sorry love, you're not allowed in the wings or backstage – Security reasons.' He said with a stern voice.

'Not allowed? I'm Jack's girlfriend and I've been touring with them, dude and I think I should be allowed backstage.' I cried, disappointed.

'Listen miss, I'm not allowing-'

'Dude, let her through. She's not gonna bite.' I peered round the security guard as far as I could to see Jack who had been messing around with the guitar. He winked at me and I laughed.

'But Jack-'

'Don't let her in and I'll sack you. I can quite easily do that.' Jack sounded quite serious and I just stared at the security guard who was glaring angrily at me. I gave him an awkward smile as he stepped out of the way to let me get past. I knew he was watching me when my back was turned, I felt his eyes on me but I kept my eyes on Jack. The bouncer tried to protest but Jack glared at him. He put his arms around me and led me off backstage.

'Okay maybe that statement I told the security wasn't entirely true.' Jack said. He was right, I had bitten him earlier and it looked like a mark was starting to show up. I stood at the side of the stage for the second phase of the set when the boys finished off with Dear Maria as usual and started jumping on each other. After they came off stage and did the signing, everyone went back to the tour bus and drank until they'd passed out.

Well, first day of tour was over and there was going to be another 20 days of this. 20 days full of fun, mischief and I was happy I was going to spend it with Jack. That night I went to bed with Jack drunk and I fell asleep happy... until hell broke out the next morning.


	12. Up to no good

I woke up with a hangover that morning which wasn't a surprise seeing as I had been completely drunk the night before. As usual, I woke up late and everyone was up and out. For the second time this tour, I'd banged my head on the bunk above and luckily Zack wasn't sleeping in it. It was light, so I gathered it must have been pretty late.

I rubbed my eyes and got up. I grabbed my towel and went to go and shower before getting dressed and packing a few things back in my bag. When I turned round, I heard a phone vibrate. I checked mine but there were no messages so that meant that someone had left their phone on the bus. I ignored it at first but the constant vibrating started to get on my nerves. Whoever's phone it was, they were very popular because it kept vibrating every 30 seconds. I knew it wasn't Jack or Alex's because they carries their phones everywhere and never left without them.

The phone vibrated again and again... and then another 5 times. I groaned and followed the sound of the vibrations. I put my things in the closet and walked to the front of the bus. I looked through the cupboards and the drawers but after failing to find anything, I slumped onto the leather seat nearest the driver's seat. Then the phone vibrated again and I felt something against my leg. I looked down to my right and saw Jasmine's bag and jacket thrown onto the seat next to me. I knew that it was wrong to go snooping around in other people's things but if someone was threatening to ruin your relationships, wouldn't you?

I rummaged through her bag and found the phone that was vibrating constantly. She had 5 missed calls from some name I didn't recognise and 6 other messages. God, she was popular. I hoped and prayed that you could mark texts as unread after reading it as I opened one of the messages. The first 3 were just random messages from I assumed as her friends. The next one I opened made me freeze on the spot:

_Hurry up and get Jack back because I want Chloe to suffer. I swear if you don't do what I told you to, you'll be in deep shit when you get back. Get Jack away from her now. Anyway, have a nice day (: xx_

The text message was a girl from Sarah, whose name I didn't recognise but seriously had a problem. Why did she want me to suffer? And who the hell was she anyway?

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs of the tour bus and I panicked. I shoved the phone back into her bag and put the jacket back where it was. I ran to the back and pretended to mess around with things in the back so it didn't look like I was up to no good. The footsteps got closer and I turned round to see who it was. She looked a bit less fake today as Jasmine walked into the tour bus and smiled and evil smile at me. Her hair was tied up in a neat pony tail and she was wearing joggers and a t-shirt. As usual, she'd still plastered herself in make-up just not as much. She grabbed her phone and jacket and left without a word, the smug bitch. After standing there for about 10 minutes just staring into space, I grabbed my coat and headed out to wherever the guys were. I needed to find them first. I pulled out my phone and turned it on. With Jasmine turning up, I really didn't want to talk to anyone outside of tour so I kept it off all night. When it had warmed up, my phone got a load of buzzing through just like Jasmine's. Most of them were from my mom and Jordan but there was one from Jack I read first:

_Hey, we're at Starbucks (again) if you wanna come join us? We left early cause we didn't want to disturb the people still sleeping (: Jack xxxxxxxxxx_

Okay, so maybe there were too many kisses on the end but at least he told me so I didn't have to go looking for them, especially when bitchy Jasmine was on the loose. I put my phone in my back pocket of my jeans and raced out of the door. I had no idea who was going to lock the bus so I went over to We Are the In Crowd's bus to tell them. It seemed quiet in the bus, so that must have meant that they had gone with the boys. I knocked on the door but no-one answered. I assumed that there were no rules about going in and out of the other buses so I opened the door and went up the stairs. Then there was an awkward moment when I could hear kissing sounds from the front of the bus. I knew I shouldn't have gone back up but I couldn't help it. I looked up and couldn't believe what I saw. There, tongued-tied (literally) with Jordan was Jasmine who'd only just a few minutes ago left the All Time Low tour bus to go wherever she needed to... which was obviously here. Jordan was sat on the seat and Jasmine was nearly on top of him. The rest of the bus was deserted which gave her the perfect opportunity to start flirting with Jordan. I couldn't believe what I was seeing and what made it worse was that they'd both seen me. Jordan just sat there, shocked while Jasmine looked like she was about to kill someone. They both just stared at me as I stood there in pure disbelief. Well, actually it wasn't really disbelief because it was totally expected that Jasmine would do such a thing.

'I... the tour bus is still open... if... you need to lock it... um-' I stuttered, and started slowly backing away down the stairs. Jasmine's face went red and I could see it ever through the 43 inches of foundation she was wearing. In an instant, she pulled herself off Jordan and started coming for me, stepping over all the junk on the floor of the bus. I moved backwards down the stairs and out of the door and broke into a run to get as far away from her as possible. She started after me which was surprisingly as she was in 6 inch stilettos. After trying to get out of her sight, she came up after me and pinned me against the wall. Her hands wrapped around my throat and moved her face so it was only inches away from mine and I could feel her breath on my face. She glared at me and narrowed her eyes and okay I admit it, I was scared.

'If you mention a word to anyone about what you saw, I will see to it myself that I will make your life a misery. And Jacks. So if you want a happy life, you'll just keep your nose out of things and let me do what I've gotta do, okay?' She hissed into my ear. Luckily, she loosened her grip on my throat a bit but I stayed quiet. I was never going to swear to her that I'd stay quiet. I stared at her blankly, looking like I had no idea what she was going on about. Her eyes got narrowed again and she looked fiercely at me, after raising her eyebrows at me not responding.

'Do you understand?' she growled. I winced in pain as she dug her manicured nails into my neck. I swallowed and nodded slightly. When she let me go, and casually walked off like nothing happened, I rubbed my neck to check is she had drawn any blood.

'Jesus Christ,' I moaned, looking at the blood dripping off my hand. Okay, I just exaggerated about it dripping off my hand but there was quite a lot of blood that she'd drawn from just her nails. Now I know what it meant by 'digging your claws in'.

'Hey, Chloe are you okay?'

I swivelled around and saw John standing behind me. I rubbed the blood on my jeans and pulled my hair in front of the cut on my neck. 'Yeah, I'm fine. Just... um... looking at the scenery.'

_What a stupid excuse; again. You really need to work on your excuses, Chloe. _I made a mental note of working on excuses when I had some time on my own this tour. John looked around and it was as if his expression meant 'what scenery?' when he turned to look back at me.

'Hey, are you coming to Starbucks? The guys are there and Jack said he text you.' John said kind of glancing at my neck but looking away when I stared at him.

'Oh yeah, I was just on my way there now. Wanna walk me there?' I said, linking arms with him and nearly skipping to Starbucks. John wasn't so keen on the skipping part, so I slowed down and walked with him. I don't think he sensed that I wanted to get away from the buses as quickly as possible in case Jasmine didn't come back and tear my head off. As we arrived at Starbucks, we noticed that it was even more packed than usual. John and I came through the door and saw that the reason that it was packed was because fans had been queuing outside for pictures and autographs from the guys.

Jack spotted me from in the middle of the crowd and waved. He pushed his way through the crowd and grabbed me before I could've been pulled down by fans. Girls tried to pull him back but he managed to get away from them. What I did next was bad and I'd dug myself a grave. As Jack held my hand, I reached up and kissed him when the fans were looking. Girls started screaming, some taking their cameras out to film and some taking pictures. The girls that were screaming could only just get the words 'oh my god' out and some stood in pure disbelief that yet another member of All Time Low was taken. I just didn't want people to think I was a bitch before they'd got to know me because that's what usually happened when a celebrity got a new girlfriend.

I pulled away first and wanted to smile at the girls who were backing away slowly but I couldn't. Luckily, Flyzik burst in to stop the situation getting even more awkward. He hung round the door with his clipboard attached to him again and shouted over to us,

'Guys come on we've gotta get going to Manchester now! If we don't move it, we'll be late!'

And so with that, everyone ran out the door with screaming fans behind them, and escaped onto the bus where we were heading for Manchester for the next show. Now that people had filmed me and Jack, I was going to be a hit on YouTube for All Time Low super fans.

Great.

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	13. Secrets revealed

Jack and I spent the journey to Manchester alone in the bunk we shared. Now that Jasmine was stalking us on tour, he could access his laptop in peace without the abusive messages. The guys spent most of their time being rowdy and yelling out the windows at random passers-by. As usual, Jeff was hidden away in his bunk on his laptop and Flyzik spent most of his time throwing up because of something dodgy he ate in Starbucks. Jack looked normal today, it wasn't like he never looked normal but he looked like he hadn't been affected by the sudden arrival of bitchy ex girlfriend. He was content, and I couldn't help but ask if he was okay.

'Are you okay?' I asked, looking at him concerned. Jack stared blankly at me then closed his laptop down.

'I'm fine, why ask?'

'I just... I think this tour is gonna be a disaster with Jasmine turning up and then facing Alex again after what happened.'

'You've been reading too much Fan Fiction. Nothing's gonna happened between me and Jasmine because I have no interest in her. Things like me going off with her and her pretending she's pregnant aren't going to affect us because I love _you_.'

Jack kissed my forehead and slid his laptop under the bunk. I didn't know whether to ask him about what John said the other day about what Jasmine had done to Jack. I opened my mouth, getting ready to say something when I heard shouting from the front room. Jack pulled the curtain back and stared down the hall along with Jeff, Colussy, Zack, Rian and Flyzik who were spread out on the sofas in the back room. I peered round the corner, sticking my head out far enough so I could see what was going on but so Jack could still see too.

I sure as hell didn't expect to see Jasmine and Alex. Everyone's jaws dropped as Jasmine started to make a move on Alex, and Alex let it happen. As she moved closer to him, she started kissing him. He did start pulling away and moving backwards but everyone could tell that she was in control. I swear Alex had no idea that everyone was watching them but wouldn't he have thought to look before she started cheating on his girlfriend?

Well, now it was ex girlfriend because Lisa clambered onto the bus just as Jasmine's tongue went further into Alex's mouth. Lisa let out a little squeal and burst into tears. Immediately, Alex pulled away from Jasmine and chased after Lisa screaming her name. The bus had stopped about 5 minutes ago outside Manchester Arena and Lisa, who had driven behind the 3 buses, ran out of the bus. The rest of us on the bus exchanged looks and turned to glare at Jasmine but she had disappeared.

'Off to flirt and make out with the next guy, I guess.' Rian said breaking the silence everyone shared. Zack looked like he was going to punch someone and then without warning, he got up and stormed out of the bus.

'Zack, don't!' Rian shouted after him. Jack scrambled out of the bus and everyone followed. Surely Zack wasn't going to flip out on Jasmine, he'd never hit a girl. I push my way to the front of the boys to witness what was (hopefully) going to happen to Jasmine's face.

Unfortunately, Zack didn't touch her but gave her a fair explanation that she was no longer welcome on the bus or within metres of any of the buses. And I described it lightly; Zack swore, cursed and yelled at the top of his lungs at Jasmine and she looked pretty darn scared. It was very surprisingly, Zack was usually the quietest of the group but yet here, he was screaming and everyone looked at him shocked.

'... if you dare to come anywhere near us, I swear I'll do something I'll regret!' Zack's face was close to Jasmine's as she backed away up to the wall behind her. She had no chance of getting away. The guys circled around her and started to close in on her but I managed to stop them.

'Guys stop! She's not worth our time, just leave it. If she wants to try and make our lives a misery she can do what she wants but she won't! Because we're all better than that and you know it! And she's cheated on everyone cause I saw her getting it on with Jordan and you all saw her starting on Alex!' I yelled, pushing my way back to the front where everyone could see me.

'Well, that's rich coming from someone who's cheated on Jack already on the before tour party,' She sniggered from behind me. I spun round and kind of glared at her and showed a shocked face at the same time. 'And don't forget that time that you screwed Alex when Lisa was dating him. So don't go thinking I'm the only slag around here. She just makes me out to be worse than I am.'

I was really speechless at that moment. How could she lie about me cheating on Jack and how did she know about what happened with me and Alex? Everyone looked at me in utter disappointment and now that my secret was out, there was no hiding it. Yes, I'd cheated on my then-boyfriend with Alex when he was on the Glamour Kills tour a few years ago, but it was only Alex, Jack and I that knew about it... obviously not.

'How dare you!' I hissed, only just managing to get the words out. I was fuming, everyone was traumatised and I really didn't know what to say. I looked around at the guys who had forgotten about Jasmine; they circled round me like I had something interesting to show them but they were just interested in wanting to know the truth. Zack walked off to follow Lisa and see if she was okay, they were really close. I don't suppose Zack wanted to hear anymore that would affect him and he'd probably end up not talking to me for the rest of the tour. Rian and Jeff just stared at each other speechless and Flyzik was the only one to speak up and start asking the questions. There was no point in lying, it was out and people needed to know now. If they were going to be angry at me, they should be angry at the truth and not a bunch of lies I've been living off of for the past year.

'What the hell is going on?' Flyzik started. I could tell he wasn't_ that _angry with me, his facial expression was more of a genuine 'are you okay' look but his tone was still tense when he said it. I gulped and nervously dug a hole in the dirt with my foot, trying not to make eye contact.

_Jesus Chloe, just tell them. _My mind was screaming at me to spit it out but if I did I knew I'd break down for the first time on the whole subject. I couldn't see Jack anywhere but I knew he had to be standing at the back avoiding me.

'Chloe what the hell happened? What's she on about?' Rian finally said after letting Colussy, Jeff and Vinny go back to the bus as they obviously didn't want to hear anymore. Then I saw Jack's distraught face. His eyes were red where he'd been quietly sobbing and his face was pale like he'd just come down with some kind of illness. I looked at Jack guiltily and looked down at the ground, clearly telling him I was ashamed. I decided to talk because the guys were getting annoyed with me not acknowledging them. I took a deep breath and opened my mouth.

'It was ages ago and at the end of tour party I got drunk and me and Alex... well, you get the idea. We were both drunk and it was after Alex split with Lisa for a while and I'd fallen out with Elliot. Alex never cheated on Lisa with me because they weren't going out. We were both upset and it just happened. I never thought it would come out because I didn't think it was gonna be a big deal. I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys because I knew it would cause tension.'

'If it wasn't such a big deal, why didn't you tell us? If you didn't think it was that important then you could've told us. I don't even remember seeing you guys going into Alex's bunk. And is that why the whole time we've been on tour, you guys have stayed away from each other and every time you're both in the room it's awkward? Chloe, why didn't you just tell us?' Flyzik said, giving me the same look.

'Well, it it kind of a big deal because me and Alex never went into the bunk... we did it on the sofa in front of you guys while you were playing a drinking game. You were all so out of your faces you never recalled it the morning after. That's why I never spoke about that party because I was afraid it would spark a memory about Alex and me. Jack was the only sober one at the time and that's why he remembers it.'

'Wait, Jack knew?' Zack turned to face Jack and the others followed, 'you knew all that time and you never told us?'

Jack hesitated and ran back to the bus quickly before Zack could follow and throttle him. I looked at Zack in disgust. I've never seen All Time Low and their crew like this before and especially Zack who was never the violent person. But with the circumstances standing as they were, the tables had been turned. Now, the audience had been left to Flyzik, Rian, Jasmine, who was nursing her bleeds from scraping her hands down the wall and Alex who'd come back from trying (and failing) to find Lisa. I choked back on my tears and stood quietly, waiting for someone to say something.

'And what about you cheating on Jack? What happened here? We were so drunk on the before-tour party and you yet again screwed Alex on the sofa?' Rian started to raise his voice, getting agitated because I hadn't been speaking. I glared at Jasmine who looked up and smiled at me, winking just to add insult to injury. I looked back at the boys who were looking blankly at me.

'That never happened. I was out on the grass with Jack on the before tour party so don't go thinking you can pull the wool over my eyes.' I said.

'Well, you lied to us about what happened with Alex and we expect to believe you after all of that that we've been told now? I don't want to hear any more of what happened.'

The boys stormed back into the bus where a fight was bound to break out. I really didn't know what to do with myself. I didn't know whether to run off and hope no-one came looking for me, to talk about it with John or to leave and get someone to take me back home where I'd be happy. I went over to Jasmine who'd finished inspecting her hand and without warning; I raised my hand and struck her right across the face.

That's what you get for lying, cheating, and laughing at someone's expense.

Page | 3


	14. Opening up to each other

Jasmine clearly didn't see it coming. Her head swung to the side as my hand came in contact with her face and instantly when she recovered, her face had already started going red. She cursed and swore and lunged for me but I evaded her punches and she fell forward, unfortunately she was still standing. She wiped her mouth and went for me again but I avoided her.

'Calm down. I'm the one that's supposed to be angry not you, chill out.' I yelled as she went for me _again_. Her hair went in all directions, like she had got electrocuted. I heard noise from the bus which meant that there was going to be brawl any minute now. Finally when she'd given up trying to attack me, she tensed her body and stood opposite, like she was ready to sumo-wrestle or something. Weirdly, she started laughing in hysterics.

'You have a serious problem. Like, a serious issue, girl. I really don't know why Jack ever dated you.' I crossed my arms and smirked. She loosened up and started walking towards me but stopped when I reached the wall and she was inches away from my face.

'Right, you listen to me. You know exactly why I'm here, don't you? You've known since I caught you snooping around in the bus after you woke up that morning. I'm just going to skip to the point, okay? You really think I would leave my phone in the bus when I damn well knew you were in Jack's bunk? Do you really think someone as popular as me, a model, who gets hundreds of texts a minute, would leave my personal phone unattended? I left it there on purpose because I knew you wouldn't resist looking at the number and the texts. You know what I'm doing here and it's definitely not to get Jack back because I wouldn't want him if he was the last guy on earth. I had my fun with him ages ago and he's just a loose end now. I'll spell it out for you shall I? I'm going to split you guys up and that's what Sarah wants and what Sarah wants, Sarah gets, okay? Get used to it; yeah you and Jack may have been best friends but that's all you'll ever really be okay? You'll never be anymore than a rebound girl for Jack to get over me. He doesn't love you.'

My eyes were filled with tears when she finished talking. She said it so plainly yet so well, that even a great liar like Jasmine had me convinced. She casually pulled away from me and walked off down the street and into an apartment where she lived. I couldn't face the arguments that awaited me back in All Time Low's bus so I walked straight over to The Maine's. The guys were spread out on the bus, on laptops, playing games and chatting on the phone. The guys said hello to me but didn't look up so they couldn't see the state I was in and I walked straight over to John's bunk where he was on the phone to one of his brothers.

I looked up at him and he gave me the 'are you okay' look but I didn't respond.

'Ross I've gotta go, I'll talk to you later.' John ended the call and jumped off his bunk, immediately pulling me into the tightest hug I'd ever felt. After that, I just broke down and cried into his arms...

**An hour later**

After managing to snivel out the whole problem to John, he kept me in his arms for ages. At that point in time, I felt a bit less crappy than before. He didn't seem shocked by it; at least he didn't show it. He didn't lecture me about 'talking to Jack about it' because this was definitely an issue I couldn't discuss with Jack and it was the first time I'd ever kept something from him. Jack literally knew everything I'd ever experienced and I felt uncomfortable not saying anything to him. John kissed my forehead and rested his head on mine. The rest of the band came over to ask what was wrong but John shooed them away and they got back to whatever they were doing. After another 15 minutes which seemed like ages (in a good way) in John's arms, he pulled away and told me sternly,

'You have to face this, Chloe. You can't hide away on our bus for the rest of the tour and you're strong. You can't let that bitch get to you because you know you're better than her. You know what you did was wrong but she had no right to tell anyone and especially lie about the truth and exaggerate it.' John puppy dog eyed me, 'do this for me, please?'

I turned to face him and sighed. I knew he was right; John was always right and he gave the best advice but I just wasn't so sure that anyone would forgive me, especially Jack who now thought I'd cheated on him now. Jesus, why was life so hard? To be honest, I just wanted to stay with John and hope that everything would sort itself out but I knew it wouldn't. I needed to do something about the mess I'd gotten myself into. So instead of weeping into John, I stood up, brushed my t-shirt and got ready to march out when John stopped me. He grabbed my arm and a span round to face him. Damn, he was hot.

'Be careful, okay? Watch what you say because words are everything now, Chloe. I'll look out for you and I'm here whenever you need me. You know where I am.'

John let go of my arm and I reached up to hug him. Cut me some slack, it was hard to hug a 6ft 2 body when you were only 5ft 7. His arms curled around my waist and I twisted my arms around his neck. It was awkward when the guys were staring at you and raising their eyebrows like something was going on. I pulled away and made my way out and into the All Time Low tour bus. I swear John and my hands brushed but I was too busy trying to sort this shit out to care. His eyes followed me until I disappeared into the tour bus and he went back into his own. I was greeted with yelling and shouting from everyone. Zack was yelling at Jasmine who'd had the cheek to turn up on the bus, Alex and Lisa were arguing while Flyzik and Rian were giving Jack a hard time. Colussy and Jeff were discussing band stuff again. But everything stopped when I entered the bus. All the issues were centred on me and I hated it. Back at home I'd never got the attention but now it was all about me and not even in a good way.

The guys stared awkwardly at me but quickly tried to avoid any form of conversation and went back to what they were doing. Only Zack and Rian smiled at me; they weren't okay with it but they didn't want to argue with me because they were already doing that with Jack.

'Guys don't, please. It's not his fault, I told him to keep it quiet. Please don't argue with him, he's done nothing wrong.' I said to Rian and Flyzik. Zack had finally calmed down and had stopped with the abusive words but he was still angry at Jasmine and went into his bunk, shutting the curtains so he didn't need to see her face. Rian and Flyzik nodded simultaneously and went to walk off. Flyzik put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed them as a sort of peace offering that he wasn't angry with me. I smiled but failed to meet his eyes as he walked past.

I looked at Jack whose appearance had slightly improved since I'd seen him about an hour ago when he'd been a complete mess. His eyed were still red and his hair was sticking out in all directions; not the way he'd usually style it. He was wearing a scruffy hoodie and a pair of skinnies because he clearly wasn't making an effort. If he carried on like that, the rest of the tour was going to be a nightmare... not like it wasn't already. Fans would see the out of character Jack Barakat and start wondering what was happening.

Jack skulked into his bunk, sniffing and wiping his eyes; the situation was affecting him badly but it wasn't like it wasn't affecting me too. Sure, I'd made a big mistake and shouldn't have messed up but Jasmine had exaggerated it like it was the crime of the century. I slid into the bunk next to Jack and rested my head on his shoulder, curling my fingers around his limp hand in the process. He didn't pull away but he didn't really respond. His body spasmed when I touched him, but I could sense that he tried to resist turning to me like we always did in the old days, when our friendship wouldn't break down and we wouldn't try to be more than what we were.

I sniffed and moved closer to him and again, he stayed where he was, muscle stiff and straight. I couldn't bear Jack being like this, to anyone let alone just me. I opened my mouth to say something but Jack's finger pressed to my lips. How did he know I was going to talk? He wasn't facing me and I tried to start a conversation,

'How did you know?' I asked, and Jack pointed to a mirror hanging on the side of Alex's bunk where he'd been staring at me. I managed to giggle quietly and unexpectedly, Jack pulled me into a hug. I snivelled and started to cry silently, making sure Jack didn't notice.

'I'm so sorry, Jack. I did this; I caused everyone to turn on each other. It's my fault.' I cried, but Jack dismissed it.

'It wasn't your fault entirely. I'm not blaming you for the complete fuck up that's happened. Jasmine caused the most of it but I'm really destroyed that you cheated on me and what's worse was that it was with Alex.'

I shot up and looked him straight in the eye, 'wait, what? I didn't cheat on you! That was complete crap that Jasmine made up! You know I never keep anything from you and you know I'd _never_ cheat on you! I love you, Jack.' Jack looked away again and sighed. The awkwardness lasted for a moment when it was filled with disappointment, hurt and a mix of anger and fright...

'I think we should end it, Chloe,' I stopped dead, 'and I was the one who invited Jasmine and I told her about what happened with you and Alex. It's my fault.'

I'm not sure whether I fainted or died next.


	15. The unexpected happens

In fact after Jack told me that, I did neither. I just stared at him, lacking emotion in any kind. I guess I was so stunned I couldn't get any words out at all. Jack somehow managed to ask and answer the questions I couldn't come to say.

'Why? Because I had no-one to talk to and I was drinking myself to death. Jasmine was the only one who was, at the time before she turned into a plastic bitch, willing to give me advice and convince me to stop drinking. I've never hated her, it's too strong a word and I invited her on tour so we could sort this mess out. She's been working for Sarah to get you to break down and she never wanted to get sucked into all this crap. She told me she never wanted any of this and I'm sorry I did it. I fell for you after you left tour believe it or not. I've been waiting for a year to see you again and I wanted to tell you to your face how I felt instead of texting you.' When I heard the name Sarah, I suddenly switched on.

'Sarah? You mean Sarah Smith? The girl I fell out with over something really pathetic and stupid? She's hated me since and this is her revenge? Oh my god,' I stuttered, moving so I was sat opposite Jack. It felt like we were just chatting about our day and playing a game, it felt so normal at the moment but I knew it could never stay like that.

Jack shifted and nodded in my direction, meeting my eyes for the first time in ages. So much for best friends telling each other everything. Turned out us both had kept things from each other but I did promise him I'd be there for him through everything. 'I'm sorry, Chloe. I ruined it for both of us. Maybe I should have listened to you before I'd made the move and we started dating. You were right all along.'

To be fairly honest, I didn't have the energy to fight with anyone right now. Life was unbelievable right now; I'd come on tour expecting to have fun and a laugh and to boast to friends that I'd spent weeks with All Time Low, The Maine and We Are the In Crowd but instead, I'd been lied to, abused, been called a slag, had my secret revealed and now my boyfriend was dumping me. Jack looked at me like it really was all his fault but he wasn't fully to blame and I couldn't let him be like that for the rest of tour. I knew what I had to do.

'Look Jack I'll leave you to gather your thoughts so I'll stay with The Maine for the rest of tour or at least until you've decided what you're going to do. I'll leave you to it.' before Jack could respond, I got up and walked out. I managed to get a snippet of Lisa saying to Alex, 'I love you.' and I whimpered like a lost puppy. Lisa and Alex got through everything together, why couldn't it have been like that with Jack and me? I was going to be straight to the point with John when I get inside their tour bus.

I climbed up the stairs and said hi to the guys for the 500th time that day and made my way to the back of the bus where John was sat in the exact same position playing with his phone.

'John?'

'Oh hey, Chloe, I didn't expect to see you back so quickly. How'd it go?' He pulled back from under the covers of his bunk and dangled his legs over the edge. I jumped up next to him as he shuffled closer.

'We've split up. He was the one who invited Jasmine on tour and he told her about the fling last year. I told him everything John, and we're still not strong enough to stay together. I just don't think I'll survive to the end of tour.'

'Hey, you will and you're staying here with me. I have problems too. You're gonna bunk with me, okay? You can stay as long as you want and I'll be here the whole time. It's not an option, you my dear are staying with me and we're gonna stay and watch movies, eat popcorn, chat and laugh together. You deserve it. You've done all you can.' John lightly punched me on the arm and I couldn't help but laugh. He made me feel much better and that evening, I didn't think once about Jack or Jasmine. We watched a pile of movies (I'd managed to convince him to watch chick flicks... how cool am I!), ate until we felt sick and laughed so hard we couldn't breathe.

When I went to pee, I got a text through for the first time in days:

_Hey you, you haven't text in ages and I'm worried about you :'( Text me back, I miss you, Louis xxx_

Oh Christ. I'd been juggling everything here that I'd forgotten about everyone back home. I quickly scribbled a message and sent it, and joined John back at the sofas. We were alone, just us two because the rest were raving on We Are the In Crowd's bus raving and All Time Low performing at the venue.

John opened his arms to me when I came back and I jumped on top of him. He squealed like a girl which made me laugh, and started tickling me. He tickled me so much we both fell on the floor laughing in hysterics. Even then, he carried on tickling me until I slapped him on the arm and he pulled back.

'John, stop!' I squealed in between giggles. I pulled myself back onto the sofa but I was squashed by John who'd gotten up off the floor rubbing his arms.

'You, miss, have one hell of a punch.'

'I'm sorry, John, you know I love you.' I smirked, pulling my best smug face.

'I was hoping you'd say that.'

John moved off of me so he wasn't squishing me and faced me. He smelled nice, some kind of aftershave that gave off a strong but sweet smell. He pulled me into his arms and pressed his lips to mine. He was warm and inviting; I ran my fingers up his neck and kissed him back. He made kisses mean more and more every time he kissed me more. This wasn't lust and spur of the moment, this was love and passion. I didn't think once about anyone else except John.

Oh my god, I love him.

We didn't pull away for ages; we just stayed there, ignoring any sounds or strange movements and I didn't care. I knew what I wanted now and I wasn't going to screw it up. I could feel the smiles in John's kisses and I smiled back. To stop it going any further, I stopped kissing him on the lips and kissed him on the nose. John did that cute giggle I heard all the time on YouTube videos. I was here, making out with one of the most amazing guys on the planet. Nothing else mattered to me now because John made me happy. I didn't care if anyone called me a slag for moving on so quickly and John wasn't my rebound. Weirdly, I even considered for a minute that John meant more than Jack but I didn't want to think about Jack at all.

'Well, that was unexpected.' I said, looking into his dark brown eyes. If I stared into them any longer, I swear I could have got lost. We heard noises from the other guys' bus but we still ignore what they were doing.

John moved back into the position he'd been in when we were watching the movie but I leaned into him and curled up in his arms. It was cold tonight, but his body heat made me warm. I liked that feeling of being with someone special and watching a movie whiling hearing life going on out in the distance. The buses were parked on the hill just a few yards away from the venue and we could hear the low beats of Zack's bass and the mixed thumps of Rian's drums and the music from We Are the In Crowd's bus. I moved over to the window behind and stared outside. It was beautiful; you could see Manchester's city lights glowing and the stars collided with the gleams.

I didn't realise John had moved and he came up from behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. Leaning his chin my shoulder, he stared with me out into the open and I could feel him smile. I leaned my head on his, and we stayed there for a while. It wasn't awkward, it was perfect.

'I feel so guilty.' I said, looking at the floor.

'Why?'

'Because I'm here with you and I've not cleared anything up with Jack. And I like you, too.'

'Aw, really? Look, don't worry about Jack because he'll be fine. Can we forget about him? I just want it to be you and me. It was a really nice night tonight; I haven't felt like that in ages and you've made me one of the happiest guys on the planet.' He kissed my cheek and pulled away to get ready for bed. I turned round and sat back on the sofa, attempting to watch the remains of whatever was on the TV. When I glanced at John, he was in the middle of getting changed and I'd definitely looked at the wrong time.

'Jesus, John! Did you have to get changed in the hallway? Don't fling your genitals all over the place.' I laughed.

'Oh, sorry. Shouldn't have been looking then!' He mocked, hopping into a pair of boxers. I turned the TV off and poked John in the stomach when he tried to tickle me again.

'Oh crap. I forgot to bring my stuff in here and now I'm gonna have to go and get it.' I groaned. There was no way I was stepping foot in their bus yet.

'No need to worry because we've got it all here. I took the liberty of grabbing it when we left Tay's bus.' Garrett had walked in holding up all of my stuff in my bag.

'Thanks, Garrett. I owe you, man.' I said, grateful at the fact that the boys knew I didn't want to face Alex or Jack if I bumped into them.

I went into the bathroom and changed into my nightclothes, shoving the clothes I'd worn today in a plastic bag and removing all my make-up that had run from all the crying I'd done. When I came out, Kennedy ran into the bathroom desperately and I had to laugh. He'd clearly drunk too much. He ran outside to throw up after peeing. Everyone seemed to find it funny. I slumped into John bunk next to him and he kissed me. He was on his phone playing Angry Birds again but put it away when I came in.

For the first time this tour, I went to bed with someone who I _knew_ liked me and I successfully fell asleep happy. And for some reason, I had this weird feeling that I was going to wake up happy.


	16. A happy ending at last?

I woke to giggles and the sound of something like deodorant being sprayed. John was sat on the side of his bunk, dangling down to see what the rest of the guys were doing. I sat up and rubbed my eyes; the bunks in The Maine's bus were taller than the ones on All Time Low's. I peered down at where John was looking to see Kennedy, Patrick and Garrett spraying Jared's hair blue and drawing all over his face when he was still asleep. I hoped they knew what they were doing, if Jared walked on stage tonight like that, I really don't how how the fans would react. But Jared would definitely be humiliate and probably wouldn't talk to the boys for days.

John pulled me closer and kissed me on the forehead, 'morning,' he whispered in my ear; he knew I didn't like people shouting when I first woke up. I leaned on his shoulder and continued to watch the guys face paint Jared which I found very amusing. I managed to wriggle free from John and get changed just after they finished painting Jared so he looked like a smurf. I changed into my clothes, a Blink 182 hoodie and a pair of skinnies, and threw my clothes in the cupboard I shared with John. I was about to enter the Champagne room when Jared was suddenly startled at his look when he went into the bathroom after me. He cursed and shouted 'I'm getting you back for this!' at the guys in the front room who burst into hysterics at the sight of his distraught face. I peered round the corner to see Jared scrubbing his face and hair with a towel which was turning bluer by the second. I sniggered silently and walked past, trying not to make it obvious that it was funny as hell.

Everyone was gathered on the sofas for a random Skype from friends and I was sat there awkwardly throughout the whole thing. The only time I spoke to anyone on Skype, was when John's family were on and he introduced me to the family. I just stood there awkwardly as his family asked me questions and I replied. I smiled at them and said hi and said things about myself as you do. I snuggled back up to John who happily puts his arms round me. If things carried on like this, then I'd be very happy for the rest of the tour.

At that moment, Flyzik ran into the bus and told us that we were getting ready for moving onto Birmingham for the 4th day of tour. As predicted, I spent the journey with the guys; all of the guys actually. I felt like I fitted in more when I was with The Maine; no awkward tension, no arguments and everyone looked like there wasn't a care in the world. For once I beat Patrick in Mario Karts but that's because he was worse than me.

'Wow, you must be _really_ bad, Pat,' John joked, eyeing me and implying that I was still terrible.

'Hey! I'm not too bad. It's not like I've not beaten anyone,' I said, playfully punching him on the arm. He did his best to look hurt but it wasn't working on me. John felt more like a best friend than a boyfriend. We were those kind of people that act like best friends in a relationship; and that was good. We played a few more rounds of Mario Kart, a bit of Modern Warfare and then continued with the computer games by teaming up and battling each other at Pokemon.

When we arrived at the location, everyone piled off of the buses to get some air after being closed in. I was okay, I'd slept in All Time Low's bus and it was smaller than The Maine's so I felt fine. I followed the boys out, except John who was texting his mom (lol) and we came outside at the same time All Time Low did. All I heard was Alex scream 'We are HERE!' and stamped his foot on the ground. It must've been some personal joke because Rian, Zack and Flyzik burst out laughing. Zack saw me, smiled and waved, so did Rian. Alex kind of did, he smiled at me but didn't wave. I shouted hi to the guys and turned round and saw We Are the In Crowd's bus pull up behind The Maine's. I was standing just outside the door to the bus when I was attacked by John who jumped on me from the top of the stairs and bit me on the ear.

'Ow! You rat,' I joked, trying to bite his ear but he was too tall. He wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder, blowing hair into my face. I scowled but saw that Jack was looking at us both. Well, that would add insult to injury and oh dear did it. He raised his eyebrows at me and had an expression that showed I'd hurt him without even saying anything to him yet. I shrugged and gave Jack an awkward smile but he'd already gone back into the bus. Well, tonight was going to be awkward because I was watching the boys for the second time this tour.

**7:30pm**

When the doors opened, all the screaming fans poured into the venue and I was the only one who looked sane in the crowd. I stood at the side of the crowd, furthest away from the same security guard that told me I couldn't go backstage the the other day. He gave me dirty looks when I glanced over every now and again. After We Are the In Crowd performed, I high-fived Tay who was especially happy with how she did and they went back to refresh and drink. When The Maine started to perform, John kept looking at me and winking while he was singing. Halfway through the set John started to talk about me. I hadn't told the others yet so this would be a shock to all their systems. John was handed his acoustic guitar by Colussy who was on the phone to someone and was looking in the other direction. He sat on the stool and started testing the guitar. He lowered his microphone and started speaking into it,

'I'd like to dedicate this song to a special someone who's here in the audience somewhere tonight. When I say somewhere, I mean I have no idea where she is. I've decided to slow the song down so it's the acoustic instead of the original. This is for Chloe and it's called I Must Be Dreaming.' He started to play and I fell in love again. I smiled like an idiot when he sang the words. The guys behind the railings were swaying to his amazing voice. I knew the words so I sang along:

_She thinks I'm crazy_

_Judging by the faces that she's making_

_And I think she's pretty,_

_But pretty's just part of the things she does that amaze me  
>She calls me 'sweetheart'<br>I love it when she meets me when it's still dark  
>And she watches the sun<br>And she's the only one I have my eyes on_

_Tell me that you love me and it'll be alright  
>Are you thinking of me?<br>Just come to me tonight  
>I know I need you just like you need me<em>

_Can't stop, won't stop, I must be dreaming_

I just stared at him when he carried on singing. He moved on the stool to face me when he sang. When he finished, he winked at me and beckoned me to come up on stage. Well, this was going to be embarrassing. Oh deary me.

I walked up onto the stage and John hugged me in front of everyone. Before I knew what was happening, I was kissing John O'Callaghan on the stage on front of hundreds of fans who cheered and whistled, a reaction I wasn't expecting to get.

And the rest of tour was just that.

I spent tour with The Maine and with We Are the In Crowd, spending some time with All Time Low. It was awkward though, but I felt like I just had to wait until they'd thought it out. I still spoke to Jack, but just not like we used to, opening up and telling him how I felt and instead, John was there for that. I had such an amazing time on tour with the guys I wouldn't actually mind doing it again.

The night on the last day of tour, John pulled me back after the show and dragged me outside. I looked completely confused. He grabbed my phone and pulled out his, putting his number in my phone and texting himself so he got my number.

'Hey, I'm not gonna see you for a while because we're gonna be in Atlanta so text me, okay? I want this to work because... I really like you. I have since we met the day before tour started. I just kept it a quiet and I didn't even tell my band mates.' John handed me back my phone and I shoved it in my pocket. After fiddling with his phone and saving my number, he put his phone in his jacket pocket and grabbed my hands.

'I'm gonna miss you, Spastic,' I said, kissing him on the nose. I remember I always used to do that to Jack and a wave of pain and betrayal washed over me.

'I'm gonna miss you too, Frog,' he replied. We'd got the nicknames after John had spazzed out after I jumped on him and I got my nicknames form jumping on him. It was Garrett that said it first and John just carried on using it from then on.

John hugged me and started to walk away but I held onto his arms. He came back again and kissed me, his lips were so soft; I knew I wouldn't be kissing them for ages. As he walked off to go to the shower in the Bristol's O2, he shouted back to me,

'Oh before I forget, Jack and Alex want you in their tour bus in about 10 minutes!' He disappeared into the darkness but saw his shadowy figure in the light of the venue.

I wondered what Jack and Alex wanted me in the bus for. Well there was only one way to find out and that was to confront them. I grabbed my stuff from the bus and headed over to All Time Low's. For the first time since day four of tour, I was greeted with music, smiles and alcohol.

'Chloe, I'm so so sorry,' Jack said as he handed me a beer and took a swig of his own. 'I'm sorry I didn't believe you, Jasmine admitted to lying to me and Alex got her kicked out. She's been caught red-handed. I'm so damn sorry.'

'Yeah, we're all sorry. Especially me. I'm sorry for everything I've put you through.' Alex put his hand on my shoulder. Maybe tour wasn't going to that bad after all.


	17. Apologies and Lies

My eyes followed Alex as he went to get another beer from the fridge. Jack smiled at me from the ridge of his cup and took a sip. As usual, people had crowded onto the bus and were competing against each other for the final round of Mario Karts to see who would win this time on tour. Everyone had already started drinking all the beer from wherever they could grab; not bothering to label each other's drinks and sharing all round.

I focused back to Alex and Jack who both now stood in front of me just staring blankly, like they were expecting something from me. We didn't say anything for a while, just listened to guys at the back room and the music blaring from the speakers through the TV. Jeez, these boys were so vain; most of the songs that were played were their own. I kept fidgeting and I could never keep still for longer than 5 minutes because moving always made me feel comfortable in an awkward situation.

I looked from Jack to Alex and both had that uneasy look gleaming in their eyes. Then Alex started to talk, 'yeah so as we said, we're sorry for everything. This tour's been really awkward and we all tried so hard to make it great for you. Looks like we failed and we're sorry.'

'Guy's look, it's been fine, almost. You apologising makes it okay now. I know I spent most of the tour away from you and with The Maine but I just didn't want to screw things up even more than I already did. And _I'm _sorry for the crap I've done. I love you guys and I don't want it to be like this.' I took a swig of my drink before I could say anymore about me and John and telling them how much of a great time I had with The Maine.

The atmosphere around us was more relaxed which decreased the tension between us three at a minimum. I laughed at our stupidity and put my drink on the table and pulled the boys into a hug. I broke down then, and cried and cried until there was nothing left. I wasn't sure whether it was tears of happiness that we'd made up or just a moment of sadness that left me feeling bad. The boys hugged me too and it wasn't long until everyone was joining in a group hug. I was squashed in the middle as Jack, Alex, Zack, Rian, Colussy, Flyzik, Jeff, Vinny, Tay, Jordan, Rob, Mike, Cameron, Garrett, Patrick, Jared, Kennedy and John all clambered round me and had a group hug. I was a claustrophobic and it wasn't helping. I wriggled out of the circle and jumped outside for air. I coughed, took a sip from the drink I'd grabbed from the counter on my way out and checked my phone. I had a text from Louis again:

_I hope you had a good time (: We've gotta catch up when you get back! Where are you gonna be tomorrow when the guys drop you off? I can meet you if you want? Louis xxx_

I smiled at him; he was so sweet and I did miss him even though I had barely thought about him all tour and I kind of felt bad for it. I decided I'd reply to him and actually think about it:

_Hey! Thank you, I had a great time! Okay, the boys are dropping me off to meet my friends and family at Bristol tomorrow at about 11:00am so can I meet you there? Chloe xxx_

I hit send and shoved my phone in my pocket just as Jack came out half-drunk, half-sober with a can of beer in his hand. He leaned against the bus and looked up at the sky, taking another swig of his drink. I leaned against the bus too, but facing him so my shoulder was resting on the side. He looked back at me and even in the dark I could see his face so clearly.

'I was a dick.'

'No you weren't, Jack.'

'Yes... I was. I didn't treat our relationship properly. I'm sorry.'

'It's okay and I'm sorry too. But can we please stop with the sorry's? It's kinda getting boring now.'

Jack laughed slightly and looked down, kicking dirt with his feet. He looked back at me and started to talk but he looked like he was in pain to say it,

'Can we stay best friends? I really don't wanna lose you because you mean a lot to me. I love you,' he hesitated on the last bit and broke down which made me feel bad. I threw my can on the floor and wrapped my arms round him, hoping to make him feel better. The constant thumps of the bass were driving the vibrating through the bus floor and outside and I could feel it under my feet. Jack pulled away and looked me in the eyes, all red and his face was miserable.

'I love you too, just... I just want to stay friends okay?'

'You don't want to say it because you're dating John. It hurt like hell seeing you with him but I can accept it; I'll just be a bit menstrual about stuff. I'm gonna spend my time trying to get over you.'

'Look, I'll promise you I won't be all romantic with John in front of you, okay? You're still my best friend, Jack, and I love you like a best friend and I promised you I wouldn't ever leave you so start dealing with me because I'll be sticking around for a while.'

Jack laughed and pulled me into a tight hug, just like before, the type of hug best friends share, the type of hug that wouldn't lead to anything else and I was happy with that.

There was just one problem left; Jasmine.

As I went to pick up the can I had thrown on the floor, she turned up out of the blue behind We Are the In Crowd's bus that was parked at the end after The Maine's. She looked worn down and tired, it made her look vulnerable. He was drained of any colour in her face and she looked like she'd just got out of bed. I glared at her and was about to hiss 'go die' when Jack stopped me from moving forward to punch her again.

'Chloe, don't. She's come to apologise.'

It was hard to hear to be honest. I didn't even think she had it in her to apologise for all the shit she caused, let alone look at me and keep a straight face. My body lurched forward for a moment but I pulled myself back, barely able to keep the anger inside of me. She backed away when I went forward but still stood her ground. She stood there until I'd calmed down, and then managed to get words out of her mouth.

'I'm sorry.' She choked, blatantly trying to stop laughing in my face and shouting 'I told you so' but managed to stop herself. I scowled at her, managing to keep my distance, but I was struggling to stay where I was; I just wanted to rip the bitch's head off. Knowing she'd been working for Sarah, the girl who lied, bitched, backstabbed, and did everything you could ever imagine (yes, EVERYTHING) to me, made me feel sick. I'd had my revenge on her though, and that's why she wanted me to suffer and she'd found the perfect person to use to get to me; by using Jasmine through Jack.

'At least make it sound like you mean it.' I replied. I yanked my arm that Jack still had a grip on, a walked away, back onto All Time Low's bus and I promised myself I wasn't going to ruin anything tonight. It was the last night of tour and I wanted to get out of my face and wake up in a weird location to finally convince myself I'd had a great time.

When I'd come back into the bus, I'd forgotten about Jasmine, who'd apparently yelled at Jack before storming off into her car and driving away, ranting to Sarah about how her 'plan didn't work' on the phone. I had to laugh when Jack told me, he said he'd tried to keep a straight face as he handed me another beer from the fridge after pushing Rian out of the way because he was hogging the space. Rob, Mike and Cameron had passed out on the sofa, with their beers slipping out of their hands and Alex caught all three before causing a mess on the bus floor. Flyzik had loosened up now after panicking over where to store the guitars and the guys had hit their 3rd hour playing Mario Karts.

John came out of the bathroom, pulling up the zipper on his trousers, kicking the door shut with his foot on the way out and came over to Jack and I. They used to be best friends but when Alex came on the scene in high school, they'd grown apart but they still stayed loyal to each other. John slapped Jack on the shoulder and leaned over to the counter to grab a beer. In the process, John grabbed hold of my hand and entwined his fingers with mine. I held on but loosely, and squeezed when John came back to look at me, trying to hint at the fact that Jack was uncomfortable. John nodded but still held my hand.

That night I did what I said to myself I'd do before I came on tour; I got completely smashed and found myself sprawled on the grass outside with Jack and John in the morning and the journey back was worse.

I'd landed myself a seat in All Time Low's bus with John and Kennedy who was driving, the only one who hadn't been drinking along with Cameron who was driving We Are the In Crowd's bus and Mike who was tending to The Maine's. I walked... well, stumbled, to the kitchen and started to raid the cupboard for any aspirin or headache tablets. I sifted through the bottom drawer and after failing to find anything, I called Zack for some help.

'Zack?' I shouted to the back room. He peeked his head round the corner, no shirt on as usual.

'Yeah?'

'Where is the aspirin? I can't find any!' he got up and stretched up so he could reach for the top shelf and grab some aspirin. He grabbed a glass and dropped two tablets and waited for them to disintegrate before handing it to me. I raised the glass and nodded before taking it in one gulp. Taking aspirin for a hangover was actually vile.

**An hour later**

Flyzik shouted from the front of the bus after he parked it, 'WE'RE HOME!' and I nearly fell out after running so fast down the steps. There standing, waiting to pick me up were my friends and the whole of One Direction, smiling like they hadn't seen me for months.

Wait, they HADN'T seen me for months.


	18. Goodbyes

I screamed and ran up to Jordan and Jess who stood patiently trying to contain their excitement, pulling them both into a hug. In a way I was sad to leave the guys from tour, but I was happy to see everyone again and tell them everything (obviously I'd leave things out). All Time Low emerged from the bus and walked over to us and Jordan just completely froze. Oops, I forgot to mention her unhealthy obsession with Zack. She smiled from ear to ear, unable to hold in a squeal from her lungs.

I let the girls loose on the band and went over to One Direction who were waiting for me to acknowledge them. They all stood in a line, and I instantly ran over to Louis, who pulled me into a hug before I could even look at him. I hugged each one of the boys and introduced myself to Niall and Zayn because I'd only met Liam, Harry and Louis. Louis had his glasses on and was wearing his little beanie and I couldn't help but steal the hat and put it on. He pouted but ended up laughing. I actually missed the guys and I'd completely forgotten about whilst I was on tour.

I turned round and saw that Jordan was spending her time talking to Zack and Jess chatting with Alex. John was on his way out of the bus and I grabbed him before he could go anywhere and pulled him over to meet the boys.

'Guys, this is John. John, this is Harry, Zayn, Niall, Louis and Liam.' I said, pointing to the boys one by one as they greeted John with their normal warm smiles. Unusually, there weren't many people around so the guys didn't get as many fans attacking them like they usually did. There were a fair few though, taking pictures, videos and asking for autographs. I let John go and sign a load of stuff and I was left standing with the boys.

Jess ran over to Liam and put her arms around him and Jordan clasped hands with Harry. Wait, was I missing something? Were they not telling me something? I looked at Jordan and tried to force an answer out of her but she just blushed and tightened her grip on Harry's hand. Before I could witness anymore, Flyzik hung out of the bus window and shouted at the guys to 'get their asses back so they can catch the next flight to Baltimore'.

Damn, they were leaving. I didn't want them to leave yet.

The girls scuttled off back to whatever they were doing and We Are the In Crowd started to get onto their bus. I ran up to them and said goodbye, hugging Tay hard, we'd gotten close throughout tour and she was definitely someone I wanted to keep as a friend. The boys hugged me and winked at me, then looking in the direction of John who was in his own world, staring at the sky then typing something on his phone.

I ran over to All Time Low and they all pulled me into a group hug. I wanted to lecture them about how I'd enjoyed tour and everything but I knew they wouldn't want it, especially Flyzik, who had to drive all the way to Heathrow airport in London to grab a flight to Baltimore. I hugged Alex first, then Rian and Zack. Jeff, Colussy and Vinny came out to say a quick goodbye then retreated back into the bus to finish playing each other on Mario Karts. Really, I didn't know why they played that game so much. I hadn't seen them play anything else all tour except maybe a bit of Modern Warfare but that was it basically. Jack would be the emotional one, the one who'd been involved in all of the shit that happened so it was time to give him an extra special hug. God, I sounded like I was 7 years old again.

'I'll miss you,' he said as I hugged him. He kissed me on the cheek but I knew it was okay.

'I'll miss you too. I promise I'll text you every day, Barakat. Like we always do.' Adding that part on the end made him less tense, like it was back to the old days where we didn't think we were anymore than just best friends. Flyzik came out and just stood there, not knowing whether to just say goodbye or scream it. I grabbed him and hugged him. I adored Flyzik, he was such an amazing person, staying calm in most situations and trying his best, I loved him for it. I pulled away and looked him in the eyes,

'Hey, you, you were amazing on tour this year. I'm gonna miss you and your obsession with Mickey Mouse. Thanks for being there for me, even though you probably didn't know it at times. I'm grateful, Flyzik.' He smiled when I said it and quickly kissed me on the cheek before following the boys into their bus. Zack waved at Jordan and she blushed, looking down at her phone as an excuse to turn the attention away from her. I giggled.

_Sooooooo onit, _I thought to myself.

The rest of The Maine were getting ready to go onto their bus but I pulled them back and said goodbye. I was going to miss this band more than anyone; they'd made me feel so at home on tour and I was incredibly grateful for it. They'd stopped me from breaking down about Jack and stopped me from giving Jasmine the most painful death ever and they were a great band to be with. After they piled onto their buses, I was left with All Time Low and John. I walked over to John and pulled him into me. I treasured the moment; I knew that I wasn't going to see him for ages until he came back to the UK or I had enough money for a flight over to Arizona.

He hugged me back, kissing the top of my head and wrapping his arms around me.

'Hey, I'm gonna give you something, okay? You gotta look after it though because it's special.' John pulled out a silver ring, with the words _you and I_ carved into the surface on the inside.

'Oh my god John, really? Are you ready for this? It's lovely though. Awh, thank you!' I threw my arms around his neck and put the ring on, my right hand.

'Oi, John Oh, We've really gotta go!' Kennedy yelled out of the bus window, signalling to me to find a way of getting him inside the bus.

'Go on, John. You don't wanna miss your flight now, do you?' I smiled at him and he smiled back. He was happy and so was I but somehow I knew Jack was glancing out of the window at us both.

He cupped my face in his hands and kissed my lightly, a tear slipping down his cheek as he did it. I was going to miss him a lot. He pulled his hoodie off and wrapped it around me, walking into the bus and waving. Kennedy blew a kiss as a joke and the rest of the guys hung out of the window as they drove off down the road, turning onto the motorway. Just before they turned a corner, I saw John hang out of the window and wave for the last time. All Time Low's bus shortly followed by waving, shouting and beer cans being held up; the normal thing any boy would do and We Are the In Crowd's bus came after, the normal way of saying goodbye by just waving and smiling.

As they all turned round the corner and out of sight, I started regretting being like I had been on tour, they'd all been so nice and I was a douchebag. But what's done is done and I wanted to make the most out of being with One Direction and my friends today.


	19. Party!

For a moment, I just stared into the distance, in the same position where the buses had disappeared then Louis came up to me and put his hands on my shoulders.

'Hey, they'll be back. You've got us to look after you,' he said as I turned around. They were standing around me and smiling. I forced a smile on my face and walked over to Jess and Jordan who were pre-occupied by something.

'Oh my god, he gave me his number! Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!' Jordan jumped up and down clinging onto a piece of paper with numbers written onto it. I looked at her with my mouth agape; Zack had given her his number. I was so texting him to ask him why, hopefully to get some gossip. I winked at Jordan who blushed for the 23rd time today. Harry came over and poked her in the side so she poked him harder.

'Are you gonna be ignoring me now because you've got his number?' Harry pouted, doing his best impression of a lonely puppy. Jordan poked him again and replied,

'Of course I'm not going to! I'm not like everybody else. Oh Chloe, I have something to tell you,'

I snapped my head up after trying not to look at Louis who was pretending to be a rabbit. 'What? What did you say?'

Jordan sighed and put the paper in her pocket. She knew I could never multi-task; even if I am a girl.

'I said I have something to tell you and I'm gonna tell you right now because you'll zone out again. We're throwing a party tonight to celebrate your birthday as we missed it because you were on tour with the boys. So tonight me and Jess are going to be round yours and we're gonna make you look amazing for your party.'

I knew they were up to something. From the moment I had stepped outside of the bus I knew they looked shifty and the glint in their eyes as they uncontrollably smiled made them look even guiltier than before. I smiled at the thought of a party; considerate was a word to describe my friends. I finally felt like I belonged with Jess and Jordan and One Direction. Sure, I had other friends but my closest friends were worth more than anything in the world.

I beamed at the boys who were looking proud thought Louis had changed from pretending to be a rabbit to being a horse. Sometimes I wondered about him. I just stared at him for a moment then back to the guys who were standing in a line, waiting for my response.

'Let's do this shit!' I shouted, pulling them all into a massive hug.

Later that day, I found myself surrounded my Jordan and Jess, trying numerous dresses and clothes on to make me look my best. Nothing worked though so Jordan pulled out a dark blue velvet dress and my god, did it look beautiful. She yanked it over my head while Jess plugged in her curlers and started on my hair. The girls should've been paid for it because they were basically a moving hair salon and fashion store.

When they finished, they dragged me to a mirror and looked extremely smug when they saw my reaction. For once in my life, I actually liked what I was wearing. My hair was tied up and curly unlike when I always straightened it and I was wearing a dress I only thought the most beautiful of girls would wear. I was completely shocked at how I looked and at the moment, I couldn't wait to get out and go to the party that I had no idea where it was.

'Oh my god, you look amazing! You should dress like that more often.' Jordan exclaimed, circling me and admiring the dress, looking like she wanted it more.

'Yeah, Louis' gonna love you.' Jess said.

'What? Louis?' I said cautiously, looking at Jess with a raised eyebrow.

'Oh, I mean, he's just gonna... they're all gonna think you look amazing.' She said, hesitating. Jordan scowled at Jess and she looked at the floor.

It only took the girls half an hour to finish getting ready because they'd already started sorting themselves out while they were making me up. Then the doorbell rang and I nearly crapped myself. I started to run out of my room but Jordan pulled me back and went to get the door herself. She ran down the stairs and opened the door. I ran to the hallway and peered down the stairs to see who it was. One Direction were standing in suits in the doorway ready for my party and dear me, did they look hot. They stepped back and all I could see now was the 2 pair of shoes that belonged to Zayn and Niall. I went back into my room when Jordan glanced up the stairs just to see if I was looking or not.

'Chloe, come down, it's time to go to the party!' Jordan yelled up the stairs and I made it look like I wasn't spying in on what was going on. Jess went first and I followed her down the stairs. The boys' reaction was classic; they all stood there with their mouths agape and frozen to the spot, a reaction I'd never thought I'd get let alone it being One Direction.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, Louis slid over to me and reached his arm out.

'Ma'am, may I direct you to your transport for the night?' I took his arm and he led me out through the front door and onto the lawn. If it wasn't great enough that Louis Tomlinson was taking me to my birthday party, there was now a limo waiting outside to pick us all up. People outside stared as they watched us being escorted by One Direction into the limo. When we got inside, there was champagne and music playing with lights all around. It was so much better being in a limo that looking at pictures of one's or watching videos of people in them.

When we arrived, Louis got out and opened the door for me and I stared up at the venue at where the party was being thrown. But to be honest, it looked deserted and most of the lights were turned off. My hopes dropped as I was lead into the venue by Louis. Thank god because I nearly might have tripped over nothing because it was so dark. I grasped his arm so hard I think he was in pain but I couldn't see his face. Harry raced ahead of us and opened the door to the venue. I saw the moonlight leak into the room from the tall glass windows on either side of the room and I thought I saw a body move but I thought my eyes were deceiving me.

'Hold on.' Louis whispered and detached himself from my arm and went to flick the lights on.

After that, when the lights went up the room erupted in cheers of happy birthday's and music. I was completely speechless and unable to move anywhere except lean on Liam's arm who'd decided to stand beside me in case I did what I just did.

This was, by far, one of the best nights ever.


	20. Party! part 2

Liam held me up straight as I tried to regain my strength in my legs and the fact I barely wore heels wasn't really helping. Really, people wouldn't think 'why the hell is she being so melodramatic over a party?' but the truth was because I'd never thrown a party before and my mom always said she'd throw a party for my 16th but never did.

My mom appeared behind us and had followed us into the venue. I hugged her and thanked her because she was the one who'd suggested a party in the first place and One Direction had organise it with the help of Jordan, Emily and Jess.

The room was massive, like one of those huge Victorian ballrooms but designed like a night club with a dance floor, a bar and a stage where there was a DJ playing the music in the background. The windows let the moonlight pour into the venue; and the sky was clear and a dark blue, perfect for the balcony to be open. We were standing on a balcony ourselves with, looking over the dance floor. Everyone was still looking at us and cheering. There were two bars on either side of the room because it was so big. My god, this must have cost a fortune but it was definitely worth it.

I'd finally recovered and managed to stand on my own feet without the help of Liam's body. I was still shocked but I was excited.

'Thank you guys, so much! I love you all!' I yelled at them, throwing my arms around each one of them. Louis held on the longest and I managed to drag him down the stairs to dance. Okay, I was vain with my dancing skills because I could dance but Louis was absolutely useless. But it was cute to see him flip out on the dance floor and lose his mind because it was hilarious. The joker of the group was flinging his arms around and nearly hit someone in the face. I stopped dancing and grabbed Louis' arms before he could smack anyone else in the face.

'Hey! Calm down, dude, you're getting a bit carried away.' I said, holding his arms down as he stared at me, eyes wide with excitement. What _has_ he taken? I just laughed and danced with him for about an hour then went to get a drink. I went over to the bar and order myself a martini, yes a martini. The proper one that James Bond has; three measures of Gordon's; one of vodka; half a measure of Kina Lillet shaken over ice, and a thin slice of lemon peel is added. The guy standing at the bar looked shocked; only because I'd remembered the exact measurements from the film Casino Royale. I waited patiently for my drink making sure not to nag the bartender because he'd never been asked for that drink before but when I got it, I was impressed. I raised the glass in praise and he smiled.

I turned round to observe the party that was going on. Nearly everyone in the school I went to were here and loads of kids I recognised from other schools were here too. A band was playing on the stage and I thought about trying to convince One Direction to get up and perform their songs. People wished me a happy birthday when they walked past to get more drinks and it looked like my mom would let me get drunk tonight.

'Hey, happy birthday,' I looked to my right and saw Niall standing there, looking a bit lost but happy at the same time. He was a bit shorter than me but I loved him and he was adorable. 'Sorry I've been a bit quiet, I'm just not used to new people. Being famous is kinda scary.'

I laughed when I remembered meeting Jordan for the first time on tour when he said that. And his cute Irish accent contributed to the giggle too. I replied, 'don't worry, I'm not good with people either so we're on the same wavelength.'

'Hey, y'know Louis couldn't take his eyes off you in that dress tonight. I think he's looking now; he's standing on the balcony up there.' Niall flicked his head in the direction of the balcony that lead to the entrance of the club and I saw Louis standing there with a drink, leaning against the railing. He was looking down at me and I waved. He waved back and smiled, replying to whatever Zayn was talking to him about.

I leaned against the side of the bar so I was facing Niall then someone patted me on the back and wished me a happy birthday. It was someone I recognised but couldn't remember their name.

'Yeah, he's looking but trying to keep a conversation alive as well,' I said, taking my first sip of my drink, 'damn, James Bond has a good taste in alcoholic drinks.'

'Is that a martini? I used to love James Bond and I never got to try one of his signature drinks.'

I handed Niall the glass. 'Here, try some. It's some damn good drink.'

Niall took a small sip and tasted it; his reaction told me that he liked it.

'Wow that tastes good. Bond does have a good taste in drinks.'

I turned round to the bartender who was cleaning a one of the same glasses I had my drink in and ordered another martini. Niall smiled in gratefully and we had a chat while waiting for his drink to arrive.

By the end of the night, I must have had at least 150 people wish me happy birthday, I'd grown to have a good friendship with Niall and managed to convince Liam to tell the others I wanted them to perform on stage. As the girls screamed the place down and some of the boys groaned, they performed 'What Makes You Beautiful', 'Na Na Na' and a load of other cover songs.

When the party finished, I stumbled out onto the street with Jordan, arm in arm, barely able to walk and we caught a cab back to Harry's house. We slumped onto the sofa, arms around each other as we slurred the memories of tonight.

We were about to doze off when the boys and Jess came crashing through the door. Liam had Jess in her arms and she definitely was not conscious. I slid out from Jordan who had passed out on the sofa and stumbled over to Liam. Louis grabbed me before I fell over and I managed to slur,

'What happened? Is she okay?' I loved how no matter how drunk I was; I still managed to see if Jess was okay.

'She's fine. She just got a little bit drunk and knocked her head on the speaker.' Liam replied, making his way up the stairs to take her to bed. I turned my attention back to Louis who was still holding me under my arms to make sure I didn't collapse there and then. Harry moved and woke Jordan up which made her grumpy and managed to coax her to come upstairs and go to bed.

'Yeah, it's time for your bedtime now, Chloe.' Louis said, starting to pull me towards the stairs but I refused.

'No,' I mumbled, 'I want to sleep here.' I pointed to the sofa and Louis sat me down. He sat next on one side of the sofa and I put my legs on him, lying down. After that I think I just dozed off.

I was going to have one hell of a hangover tomorrow.


	21. Hangover

I woke up in the morning with a killer of a headache, one I hadn't experienced this bad in a while. I could barely remember what happened last night but I knew I'd woken up the same place I'd fallen asleep which was good; god knows what I would've done if I had been sleep walking.

I sat up and rubbed my head, thinking about whether to get some aspirin but I didn't dare move. I had a blanket wrapped around me and on the table next to me were a glass of water and some headache tablets. My phone was lying there too and I decided to check it. I had 2 messages; one from a drunken Jordan last night and one from Louis this morning:

_I've got out the headache tablets for you and water just in case you've got a killer headache in the morning. I hope you're not too bad in the morning. D: Louis xxx_

I smiled and dropped the tablets into the water, waiting for them to fizz so I could drink it. I reminded me of the hangover I had on tour when Zack got me some tablets too. My head hurt so bad I felt like I didn't want to get up today.

'Urrgh,' I groaned, raising my head and looking around the room. I was sat in Harry's house and then it all came flooding back to me about the party. Someone was stumbling down the stairs in boxers and I turned to see who it was.

'Oh hey, you're up already? I thought you'd stay in bed seeing as you were the major dancing queen last night.' Liam ruffled his hair and stood in the hallway.

'Morning. Yeah well, I couldn't sleep; I have too much of a head ache for that. Are the other guys up?' I asked, pulling the blankets off of myself and stretching my legs.

Liam nodded, 'yeah, they're all up. Louis is in the shower and Harry's doing the finishing touches to his hair, Zayn's gone to get milk from the shop because we only just realised we were out of it and Niall is still lazing around in bed. The girls are still asleep though.'

That wasn't really a surprise.

'Where did they sleep? There aren't enough beds for everyone.'

Liam looked awkwardly at me for the moment. 'Well, you demanded to stay down here apparently because you would've had to share a bed with Niall, Zayn or Louis. But Jordan bunked with Harry and urrm... Jess stayed with me.'

'Oooh,' I said, winking at him. He blushed and looked away. He'd changed his tune; he'd gone from being totally freaked out by Jess to sharing a bed with her. I giggled. I walked over to Liam and patted him on the back and went upstairs to try and kick Louis out of the shower so I could go and pee.

I walked up the stairs, fumbling over a lone shirt thrown on the floor and headed for the bathroom. I thought it was locked but I turned the handle and it opened.

_If I get in there, pee, then leave, he will never know I was there, _I thought to myself. It was a bit of a long shot but I was desperate to use the bathroom.

I opened the door a bit more and sneaked into the bathroom. It was steamy from where Louis had been in so long. I went to lift the toilet seat up when the curtain that separated the shower from the rest of the bathroom was pulled back.

'Oh Christ, sorry Louis!' I said going red and looking away to avoid seeing him completely naked.

'Hey, what ever in the world were you doing?' He grabbed his towel and wrapped it round his waist, climbing out of the shower in the process.

'I was really desperate for a pee and I thought you wouldn't notice.' I squawked, not being able to meet his eyes. Louis just laughed.

'Ha, you really think you'd get away with it? I have ears like a hawk, I can hear anything, darlin',' He said, rubbing my shoulder on his way out of the bathroom, 'don't worry about it.'

How could I seriously not worry about it? I'd walked in on Louis naked. Images would scar me for life. Though it wouldn't really scar me *wink wink*.

When I came out of the bathroom I bumped into Jordan who was on her own way to the bathroom.

'Hey,' she said, trying to get past me.

'I just embarrassed myself in front of Louis. What a retard I am.' I said to her and she stopped.

'How?' she laughed with disbelief.

'I walked in on him showering and kind saw parts of him I didn't think I'd see.'

'You think going into the bathroom is safe when he's showering, and you're not expecting to see genitals of any kind? Come on!'

'Alright, alright but I'm still knackered.'

Jordan laughed and continued her way to the bathroom.

When Zayn came back with the milk, I helped Niall cook and serve the breakfast, something everyone was looking forward to; a decent meal. Niall decided to fill me in on the gaps we missed last night because I apparently fell asleep instantly. He told me how I'd got up on stage that night and randomly danced with Louis and embarrassing details I'm not going to mention. Liam seemed to find it hilarious but I glared at him from across the table and he shut up. Harry and Louis were fighting each other to see who was better at Fruit Ninja and Jordan and Jess were quietly sat eating their food, complimenting both Niall and I about how 'delicious it was' and 'how we should both become cooks'.

Zayn finished first and took his plate to the sink to wash up and the spoke to me,

'Oh Chloe I was about to tell you. There's a girl looking for you in town. She seems to be picking fights with a lot of other people; everyone gave her glares when she spoke to me.'

I put down my fork and finished a mouthful of bacon before I responded,

'Who was it? I don't know anyone who would be looking for me.'

'Oh her name was Jasmine. She told me you knew her.'

I stopped chewing.

What the _hell _was she doing here?


	22. Aftermath

'Please tell me you're joking,' I said, putting my hands in my head. Oh dear god, what did she want now? She'd got her own way by splitting Jack and I up but she was back again?

Everyone at the table looked at me like I was supposed to tell them everything but they had no hope in hell of me telling them everything. Louis stared at me intensely but I tried to ignore it which was pretty hard.

'Oh don't worry,' I said, hesitating on what to say next, 'she's just an old friend I haven't been in contact with lately.'

Well, that was a lie.

The rest of breakfast carried on as normal, with me trying to avoid any type of conversation involving Jasmine. Honestly, she was a nightmare. After breakfast, I managed to hog the shower for a bit to wash my hair and luckily Louis didn't come in to get revenge.

As I walked out of the bathroom towel drying my hair with the towels Harry had given me, I saw Niall finally get up out of bed after going back to bed after breakfast. He stretched and yawned, smiling at me as he pulled the covers off.

'Hey Chloe, your stuff is on my bed if you wanna get changed in there!' Liam shouted from the bottom of the stairs and I made my way to his room. After I got dressed and refreshed myself, I brushed my teeth and went back downstairs. Louis was sprawled out on the sofa watching TV so there was nowhere else to sit except a comfy arm chair and that was for Harry's use only.

'Hey, give me somewhere to sit; I don't want to sit on the floor.' I said, flicking his shoulder. Louis moved up and let me sit down next to him. He rubbed his head and coughed.

'Hangover?' I asked. His wasn't going to be worse than mine but he still looked like he felt pretty bad.

'Indeed. I feel like crap but last night was damn good. How are you feeling?'

'I'm okay, probably worse than you but I think I'll be fine.'

My head was throbbing when I threw myself on the sofa. Louis and I were sat watching X Factor when Harry came in and joined us on his chair. Suddenly, Jess ran upstairs and we turned to see what was happening. Liam followed her up the stairs with his hand on her back, pushing her upstairs and all we heard next were the sounds of gagging and coughing. Harry raised his eyebrows and I flinched every time I heard her throw up.

I got up off the sofa and went to see if she was okay. Jess was hanging over the toilet seat and she was gasping for air.

'What the hell happened?'

Unable to speak, Liam answered the question for her, 'she was fine but then she just suddenly threw up on the kitchen floor; I think she definitely had too much to drink last night. That breakfast made her worse.'

Liam rubbed her back and Zayn came into the room with a glass of water. Jess started the chug it but Liam told her to stop and just to sip it. She did as she was told. Jordan, who'd been missing everything because she'd been straightening her hair, came out of Harry's room to see what was going on. Zayn mouthed 'hangover' to her and she just moved back into the room to carry on; turning the music up a bit louder so she couldn't hear the vomiting sounds.

Jordan hated listening to other people being sick because it made her sick too. Liam looked bothered but seemed to forget about it because he wanted to make sure Jess was okay.

Awwwh.

I ran back downstairs wondering why Zayn just walked out of the door again and into the kitchen to clean up the sick that was apparently on the floor but when I came into the room, Niall was already there and on his hands and knees scrubbing the floor.

I grabbed a cloth and started to help him by soaking the cloth in warm water before cleaning the mess up. He was doing fine on his own but I wanted to help.

'Hey, looks like you need a hand.' I said handing him the cloth I'd soaked.

'Thanks. I hate sick but I seemed to be the only one that was willing to clean it up.'

We worked together to clean up the floor (yes, Jess had thrown up a lot) and finally, by the time we'd finished, it was sparkling and looked brand new. Niall high-fived and we praised ourselves with the hard work until Louis thumped like an elephant with his muddy trainers on. I groaned,

'Louis! We just cleaned the floor.' I said, pointing to a bit of mud on the tiled floor.

'Oops, sorry.' He grinned and I just laughed. You could never be angry with him for long.

The door slammed again and Zayn came in with headache tablets and a fun size bag of Nik Naks. So that's where he'd been. He put the tablets on the counter and shoved the crisps in a cupboard then faced me.

'That Jasmine's still looking for you. She's been lurking around the shop all day apparently and won't leave until you meet up with her tonight.'

'Oh for god's sake, she already screwed up tour, why does she have to mess my life here too?' I really didn't mean to say that and the boys looked at me funny.

'What's she done, Chloe? What did she do on tour?'

Why did I have to drop myself in it all the time? I refused to answer the question and put the can of Rockstar down on the counter-top.

'Before I start, I think you guys should sit down because it's gonna be kind of a shock to you.' I picked my drink up again and walked straight into the living room and the boys followed me fast. Liam and Jess came downstairs who was wrapped in a blanket, followed by Jordan who'd nearly tripped down them.

Everyone gathered in the living and Louis turned the TV down; I told him that I didn't want it to be completely quiet and all focused on me when I told them what happened on tour. Harry sat in his chair and Louis sat next to me on the sofa. Niall perched on the edge of the arm next to Louis and Liam was sat with Jess on the floor who'd managed to snuggle down into the blanket and hook herself to Liam at the same time. Jordan was standing in the hallway, brushing her hair but then came and sat next to Harry. Zayn sat on the window seat as they got ready to hear my story that had happened to me over the past month.

It all poured out and I didn't stop to hesitate or try to keep a fact from them; I'd learnt my lesson of lying and I wasn't going to do it to my true friends who didn't seem too shocked by the story.


	23. What does she want now?

Okay, I take it back; they were very shocked. After I got to the part when Jasmine was snogging the face off Jordan they were shocked. Harry bolted back in his seat which made Jordan jump.

I told them everything; from Jack asking me out, to Jasmine threatening me and to my secret being revealed. I didn't break down or cry, I told them like I wasn't affected in the slightest. When I got to the bit about Jack telling me he was the one who'd invited Jasmine, Louis moved up and grabbed hold of my hand. It was unexpected and I nearly pulled away but I didn't. When I finished, everyone just sat in stunned silence and it was only until I Louis spoke that we started having a discussion.

'Don't worry, Chloe. We don't think of you any different. We're glad you told us; we knew something was up but we didn't want to barge into your conversation.' Louis reassured me, squeezing my hand. I rested my head on his shoulder and Niall put and hand on mine. I was happy to know that what I told them didn't affect their thoughts in the slightest... well that's what I hoped.

'I think I'm gonna be sick again.' Jess said, gagging then running upstairs quickly followed by Liam who tripped over the blanket. I giggled but stopped when he went completely red.

Harry turned to me and asked, 'so are you going to meet up with her tonight then?'

I closed my eyes and nearly winced in mental pain whenever I heard a reference of her.

'I don't know. I really can't think of a reason why she would come back to my town to tell me something. The only thing I can think of is to actually apologise to me and actually mean it but that's too much of a long shot and it won't happen.' I replied.

'What if we came with you?' Niall suggested, rubbing my shoulder. His Irish accent made me think that with the boys, I'd be fine and his voice made me feel safe; well all of their voices did that but I absolutely adored Irish accents.

'Well you could but it's what she'll do to me when you guys aren't around me.'

'We'll stay with you all the time then.'

'You guys can't do that; you have other things to do.'

The boys didn't want to argue. They tried to convince me but I argued against it. Sure, most people would this it would be nice to One Direction hooked onto you but I was independent and I could handle that bitch any day but I just wasn't in the mood for her right now.

'Okay fine. Just don't listen to anything she has to say because it's most likely bullshit. I'll see what she wants and then we'll leave, okay?' I couldn't believe I was agreeing to meet the bitch; most likely down an alleyway so she had he chances of killing me.

I turned to Zayn who was staring out of the window watching a bird peck the ground for worms and he found it amusing. I had no idea why.

'Zayn, did she say when and where? Because I can hardly meet her when I don't know where she is.'

'No, not really. All she said was to meet her tonight and didn't bother to tell me when and where.' he replied. Jesus, she was useless. I pulled out my phone I'd nearly sat on in my jean pocket and searched through my contacts to find Jack. I didn't text him so I put the phone to my ear after I pressed the number.

'Hey, Jack Barakat's phone,' a voice that wasn't Jack's voice said. It was his sister, May.

'Hey, May; it's Chloe. Is Jack around?'

'Oh my god, hey Chloe! Long time no see; how's it going?' she yelled down the phone.

After having a 10 minutes conversation, she finally yelled Jack's name and he came onto the phone.

'Hello?'

'Hey Jack.'

'Sup bestie.'

Jesus, he was so dramatic.

'Jasmine's in town and she wanted to meet up with me; I have no idea why though. Do you think I could have her number? She told me to meet up with her but didn't give me any contact number.' I heard him breathing down the phone then a load of noises. After a couple of minutes, he finally spoke,

'You ready?'

'Yeah.'

'This is her UK number, not the American one; 07654888713.'

_**NOTE: this is not a real number; I just made it up and as far as I know, it doesn't exist. Don't call it. (:**_

'Thanks, Jack. I'll talk to you later.'

'Bye.'

God, he was a bit blunt today. Something was wrong maybe or then again I had called him at the wrong time. He was back in Baltimore now and was probably ready for bed when I'd called him; and we were in different time zones so that didn't help either.

'I don't want to call her.' I said, starting to shake. What is wrong with me?

'Text her then.' Louis said, he squeezed my shoulders again as I text the number;

_You wanted to talk to me? Not really helpful when you don't give my friend any contact details. You and me; tonight at 8:00pm outside Tesco and don't be late. Chloe._

She deserved the snotty text; like I'd text her 'hey honey, how's it goin'? Wanna meet up later for a quick chat and a coffee? Xx'

Hell no.

She deserved all the bad behaviour she got; every moment of it and she was picking a fight by choosing to meet up with me near a dark alley at night.

'Done.'

All I could do now was wait and try to have a good day before tonight. I snapped my phone shut and put it back in my pocket.

**7:30pm**

Louis drove me to Tesco with Liam and Harry in the back seat. Both of them (somehow) had detached themselves from Jess and Jordan and accompanied me to meet up with Jasmine. It was just before 8 when we got there and it was abandoned. There were hardly anyone around and I couldn't see Jasmine anywhere.

I got out of the car and went to look round to see if I could find her. The boys raced to get behind me, just in case some scary monster came out and kidnapped me. At the moment, the only scary monster would be Jasmine's face caked in make-up.

Surprisingly, she actually turned up and even more surprisingly, she looked normal. This time, she was worse. She was wearing absolutely no make-up and was wearing an old tattered two-piece tracksuit. Her hair was tied up in an untidy ponytail and her eyes had bags under them from where she'd had no sleep.

My god, it must be serious.


	24. Different viewpoints

She approached me with caution; thinking that I would attack her anytime soon. I wanted to, but I didn't because I wanted to know what she was going to tell me. When she came over, she got straight to the point but hesitated when she saw Louis, Harry and Liam standing beside me like some kind of miniature army. Liam had his arm crossed like a security guard, Louis stood with his hands by his side stiffly and Harry had his hands curled into fists. I closed my hand around Harry's fist to help him not feel so tense. They all relaxed when I walked forward to talk to Jasmine.

'What do you want? Why are you here? Why can you not just leave me alone?' The last question was really meant to be rhetorical but she still answered it,

'I want to warn you. I'm here because of that. And this time it's not for my benefit but yours.' She answered.

'Why do you want to warn me? Like you care about my welfare,' I retorted.

'Do you want to know why I'm here or do you just want me to fuck off? Because right now, I think you should stay and listen to what I have to say.'

'I'd prefer you to fuck off but I'm here now so I might as well know.'

'You won't believe me but here goes...'

I was stunned by what she told me, and I felt my legs give way and I collapsed...

**[LOUIS' POV]**

I had to react quickly to what happened when I saw Chloe collapse. Me, Harry and Liam were standing there, tense and worried something like this would happen. As she slumped to the floor, I instantly ran to see if she was okay. Harry and Liam followed behind and Harry checked her pulse and to see if she was still breathing.

My god, what if she died? I don't know what I'd do.

You see, she meant a lot to me; and she didn't even know it. That first day when we met, something sparked between us and I knew I had to know more about her. She was willing to get to know me, and I was over the moon. But I scolded myself for letting her go on tour with All Time Low because she'd got a boyfriend. I knew it was stupid, having feelings for a girl I didn't know that well, but I felt we really got on and for the couple of months I'd known her, she'd grown on me.

Anyway, I grabbed Chloe under the arms and glared up at Jasmine.

'What did you do to her!' I hissed, trying to pick her up. Harry helped me and we both had her under the arms.

'What did you say to her?' Liam demanded, lifting Chloe's head to check again if she was still breathing.

Jasmine didn't smirk and it didn't even look like she was breathing but she just started backing away in the distance and then just disappeared. Actually, it looked like she ran away when she was out of the moonlight but I couldn't care less.

'I only warned her!' she yelled back.

Chloe was still breathing which meant she'd only fainted. We carried her back to the car and laid her down in the back. I let Liam drive us back home and I wanted to stay with Chloe. I don't care what was happening elsewhere; I was staying with her until she was conscious and feeling better.

When we got home, the guys freaked out. Niall and Zayn pulled themselves away from the Xbox to ask us what was happening and Jordan and Jess who'd been sat in the kitchen sharing a tub of ice cream. Jess started to hyperventilate, panicking that Chloe might die.

'Water, and a cold cloth; now.' Niall ordered, touching her forehead to see if she had a temperature. I stood back unable to know what to do. Liam was the one to get what Niall wanted and he handed it to him before I'd even realised. My heart started racing when I heard her cough and turn over on her side.

'She'll be okay. Just a bad reaction; but she'll be fine.' Thank god Niall knew what he was doing. When the guys backed away, I ran over to Chloe and rubbed her head. She twitched and turned over to face me.

'You know; it's a subconscious thing when they turn toward you; it means they like you.' Harry winked at me.

That was a complete lie; I'd never heard of it before.

I sat on the floor next to Chloe and just stared at her sleeping face. My god, I hoped she woke up soon. I started to doze off when Harry poked me in the side.

'Hey, you can't fall asleep there, mate.'

'I want to. I'm gonna be here when she wakes up.'

'Dude, you need somewhere warm to stay. So I'm gonna give you my permission to sleep in my chair and grab a blanket.' Harry threw his pillow at me and I caught it without looking at him. Skills.

I went upstairs and took my contact lenses out, replacing them with my black-rimmed glasses but didn't bother to put any nightclothes on. I walked back downstairs, passing Zayn taking a drink up to bed. It was late and I really needed to sleep. I kissed Chloe on the forehead and went to hide myself away between Harry's chair and the blanket.

She wouldn't know how I felt about her and I doubt she felt the same way. After Hannah dumped me I didn't feel like I was worth anything anymore. We were still good friends but I wasn't complete. It sounds crazy, yeah, but I seriously mean it.

She looked so content when she was asleep; she was fine because she didn't need to worry about anything when you weren't conscious. I felt sorry for her, really I did.

I heard scuttling in the kitchen but it was only Liam turning all the lights off. He walked past the room and started up the hallway before speaking,

'Is she okay, now?'

'She's fine. Hopefully she'll be able to tell us what Jasmine said to her in the morning. Whatever it was; I am going to kill her for it.'

'Don't, mate. Chloe wouldn't want it.'

He escaped up the stairs and I heard his door slam. Sighing, I retreated back to Harry's chair and slowly drifted to sleep...

**[CHLOE'S POV]**

I woke up screaming and sweating and unable to move.

What the hell just happened?


	25. Things affect me way too much

My body spasmed from the shock of instantly waking up. Did you ever get that feeling when you're sleeping and then thinking you're falling and grab onto something to save yourself? It was that feeling but it was like I'd been falling for a while.

My eyes were wide and I shot up, looking around desperately for something; I don't know what, just something. I wiped the sweat off my brow and rubbed my hands together; it was freezing. I looked around the room; it was pitch black in every corner of the house but the moonlight seeped through the bay windows and hit the body sleeping on Harry's chair. I squinted at the clock on the mantelpiece, making an attempt to read the time.

2:00am.

I realised I couldn't remember what happened last night but my instincts knew it was something bad. I slid down and hid under my blanket, staring out of the window. It was cloudy; there was a gap where the moon shone and you could see a few stars. The rest of the sky was overtaken by the grey clouds that looked like they didn't want to move. My eyes are very sensitive; I can sense the smallest of movements and I was always looking around because I was distracted with whatever was moving. And because my eyes are sensitive, I find it hard to step out in the morning when the suns out because the sunlight makes me wince.

Most people call me a vampire but there's no such thing and it was a ridiculous accusation. When I saw the body in Harry's chair move I snuggled further into the blanket and closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I opened my eye that was closest to the cushion my head was leaning on slightly so I could see who it was. My first thoughts told me it was Harry because no-one else used his chair but when I saw his black-rimmed glasses and his straight brown hair I realised Louis was the one sleeping in the chair. He came over to me and smoothed my hair over, brushing it out of the way so he could kiss my forehead. He sniffed and then walked over in the direction of the kitchen.

Without making a sound he made me jump as he came back into the room with a glass of water and something else I couldn't quite make out. He grabbed his phone off of the table and turned it on. The bright light illuminated his face and he fought back the urge to keep his eyes closed until he could bring himself to look at the bright white screen.

All he did was check the time and turn his phone off again; pulling the blanket over him and drifting off to sleep again. I fidgeted and turned over to face the back of the sofa. As my eyelids got heavy I let myself fall asleep again, hoping I'd remember what happened last night...

I woke up better a few hours later but it was still early; well, early for me. I had my phone under the pillow I was sleeping on which smelled of Louis and damn, it smelled nice. I rolled over to find everyone looking at me intensely, with concern looks on their faces. They'd nearly sat in the same position last night when I told them about my past except Harry and Louis had swapped seats. He was still tucked away under the blankets.

'Whoa, guys. Personal space here, what's going on?' I said, sitting up.

'Sorry, we just want to know how you were feeling?' Harry asked, moving up to give me some space.

'Yeah, how are you?' Niall whispered.

'You look better. How's your head?' Liam said.

'Guys, too many questions,' I didn't mean to say it like that but I couldn't keep track of all the questions. I stopped and started to answer the questions, 'I'm feeling better and my head is fine, what happened?'

'You kinda fell when you fainted and hit the ground, you were unconscious for most of the night and even when you were awake, and you only muttered something and passed out again.' Louis said, squeezing next to Harry to grab a seat near me.

Then it all came flooding back to me. I went to pass out again when Niall pushed my head down to stop me. I coughed and lifted my head again. The whole room was tense, filled with worry and my friends stood and the back scared something was going to happen. All this pain in my head was killing me; and I didn't meant just literally.

They all looked worried, especially Louis who's face just went completely pale and Liam's who'd completely drained of colour. Niall went as white as his hair and Zayn's eyes were filled with worry. Harry rubbed my back and rested his head on my shoulders, his dark curls falling over my right shoulder.

'Chloe, if you can remember, do you know what happened last night with you and Jasmine?' Jordan stuttered, playing with her hands in order to distract herself.

I fiddled with the ring John had given me, twisting the around on my finger, hoping it would help. Before I could speak, there was a knock and the door and then an urgent ring on the doorbell.

I let out a squeal and covered my mouth before I could cry or something even remotely similar. Harry jumped up and opened the door.

'Is Chloe Taylor here?' I heard a voice from the hallway; a very professional sounding voice. It sounded like a woman's voice.

'Um, yes, why?' I heard Harry say.

'May we speak to her, it's urgent.' Another voice came from the hallway, and this time it was a male's voice; deep and dark and mysterious; god knows who these people were.

I heard Harry choke a 'yes' and he scuffled back into the living room and when he sat back down, he grabbed my hand and started to stroke it. I stared at him, like I was trying to telepathically ask him questions. His facial expression made me want to cry; his eyes were sad and his bottom lip quivered.

'Chloe Taylor?'

'Yes?' I said before turning around.

'We have some news for you.'

I turned to see two police officers standing in the doorway to the living room; one woman and one man. They stood opposite as Niall invited them into the room.

'We're so sorry.'

Before they'd even started talking to me, I knew what they were going to say.

Oh god no; no no no. Please, no.


	26. Why me?

'No!' I screamed, covering my mouth again. Harry lifted his head and just looked and me; lost. 'No, please! Don't tell me it's true! Please!'

Harry rushed off into the kitchen. For some reason, it was like he had an idea of what it was but there was no way in hell he would know what happened. Niall slid beside me while Louis moved up and Liam and Zayn sat in front of me. Jordan and Jess came a bit closer, but they both looked like they were scared.

'Please, don't tell me it's true. It can't be. Please, officers.' I whispered into my hands. Before I had time to think, I leaned to my left and wrapped my arms around Niall's neck as he pulled me into a tight hug. Louis was rubbing my back but I still stayed glued to Niall.

The officers just stood in front of me, waiting for me to calm down. Harry came back in and handed me a glass of water; wow, I'd drunk a lot of water since I was with the boys. He kissed me on the forehead and muttered 'it's gonna be okay' but I knew it wasn't. Not if it was true.

When I'd finally managed to pull myself away from Niall (I still held onto his arms), I stared the officers straight in the face.

'Take deep breaths. It's okay, it's gonna be okay.' Louis whispered in my ear.

The officers shifted but still stood tall and looked at me sternly. When they started talking I broke down before they could get a word out. The male officer spoke first,

'We're so sorry to tell you this but your boyfriend, John O'Callaghan was involved in a car accident yesterday. The officers in America wanted us to tell you immediately. He's-'

'He's dead, isn't he? He's dead! Just say it!' I interrupted. Liam and Zayn who were on the floor, turned round and looked at me with sympathy.

'No, he's not dead but he's in a critical condition. The accident was so severe he tore ligaments in both his legs and arms; his back and spine are damaged, and has bruising to the brain. Your boy is lucky to be alive. The doctors said he may not make it.' the female officer finished.

I couldn't believe it. I was horrified when they told me he may not make it; my god, John was going to die.

'I have to get over there,' I said quietly. 'But I don't have any money.'

'Unfortunately, we can't take you to Atlanta but we can arrange for someone to take you and arrange a flight over sea.' The female officer suggested.

The boys were completely shocked at the news, almost as shocked as me but they stayed in their position, comforting me.

'We'll take you,' Liam suggested.

'No, guys you can't, where will you get the money?' I protested.

'Hey, we're a famous boy band; we can get enough money to take us over there and back. C'mon Chloe, you've gotta go for John.' He replied.

'Okay, fine.'

'Again, we're sincerely sorry we had to tell you this.' And the officers left; just like that. They dropped a bomb-shell and left me having to pick up the pieces. They didn't tell me any of the complicated details; they just told me John was going to die and pissed off.

_No, Chloe; you can't think like that. John's not going to die. He'll fight for it because he's strong and he's not going to die, _I thought to myself.

_Nope, he's gonna die. OMG SHUT UP._

I swear I needed to talk to someone; my head loved arguing with itself.

For the next half an hour, I spent it with everyone; crying and whimpering like a dog. Liam and Zayn looked like they felt useless because Niall and Louis had both of my hands and Harry was rubbing my shoulder.

I fell to my knees and wrapped my arms around Zayn who curled his arms around my waist. When I pulled away, I didn't know what to say but Liam did.

'Chloe, why did you react so badly before the officers even told you? How come you knew what it was?'

There was no escaping now; they had to know.

'Jasmine had a premonition.' They just stared at me, mouths agape, 'I know, it sounds ridiculous and a bit like Final Destination and that's why I decide to take it as a pinch of salt. She never liked me and she made it clear, but she was warning about how she saw John in a car crash. She never saw whether he died or not; and I thought it was complete bullshit. Turns out it wasn't really. She was telling the truth all along.'

'That's why you fainted? Oh my god Chloe!' Jordan ran towards me and hugged me so hard I thought my eyes were going to burst.

This time I drew myself closer to Louis who instantly grabbed me and hugged me. I wept into his arms and wrapped mine around his waist. It was nice hugging him, not a skinny body like Jack or John where I could wrap my arms twice around them. Louis was comfortable and warm. He didn't hold be by the shoulders; instead he started stroking my hair to comfort me.

'That's it.' Niall stood up and stood straight. It didn't matter how short he was, he definitely had control over the situation. 'We're getting the next flight to America. You're going to see your boyfriend.'

For some reason he seemed annoyed with Louis but I decided not to make a fuss over it; I had more important things to do than look into a reason why Niall was so menstrual.

**Later**

I spent the afternoon sat at the table with Liam looking through the flights to Atlanta that left as early as possible. I still had Louis on my arm but I forced the rest of the guys to go back to doing something that didn't involve me.

Louis wouldn't leave my side. Was there something he wasn't telling me? Honestly, I had no clue what he was thinking but Liam eventually found a flight that was leaving in 12 hours from Bristol airport.

Liam shouted to the other who were watching the TV and they all came piling in. Liam turned the laptop to show them he'd booked the tickets,

'Guys and girls, pack your bags; we're off to America.'


	27. Can this day get any worse?

We packed our bags and headed for the airport. I didn't have many things to pack seeing as most of my stuff was back home where All Time Low and The Maine had dropped it off along with the car Alex got me driven by Lisa.

Liam was the one we had to wait for as he'd packed nearly 2 suitcases full. I didn't blame him; we didn't know how long we were staying there for. Hopefully, I'd see Jack if he'd been told the news because I definitely didn't want to tell him myself.

Harry called him parents so they could drive us to the airport in two cars because in Harry's tiny car barely one suitcase would fit in there. She dropped us off at the airport and Liam pulled out the 8 tickets to give to the woman at the check-in desk who instantly recognised him.

I wasn't so bothered with the screaming fans this time though I did have a headache. Louis ignored them all and entwined his fingers with mine and pulled me onto the plane. Girls stood and stared, wondering whether Louis had moved on from Hannah and got me. How I hope they didn't think that.

I didn't say anything to anyone when we boarded the plane. Liam, bless him, had gotten hold of first class tickets so we wouldn't be sat with any fans constantly annoying them. He did it for both them and me; making sure I didn't have anyone bothering me and I had a quiet journey. I stole a seat next to Louis and Jess and slept most of the flight to Atlanta.

All I could do was worry about John and if he was going to be okay.

_Damn, he was going to be fine. He was going to recover and I would spend all day with him when he was discharged and I'd be happy to be with him,_ I convinced myself. _No, don't kid yourself Chloe, he's gonna die and you know it. Thinking to yourself that he's gonna survive is stupid._

'GET A DAMN GRIP ON YOURSELF!' I screamed at myself. Louis winced and told me to shush. We both looked up and saw that quite a lot of people were staring at me. I went bright red and slumped in my seat, making sure I wasn't noticed again.

When I fell asleep, Louis took the pillow he was using and put it behind me so I didn't get bad neck ache.

**3 hours later in Atlanta**

When we arrived, we came off the plane first and went into the airport. I ran ahead and grabbed my stuff from the carousel and legged it with Jordan and Jess so I didn't get attacked by more American 'number 1' One Direction fans on the way in.

Casually arguing with myself again on the way to the hotel we'd booked near the hospital, I managed to get hold of Jack on his phone.

'Jack?'

'_Oh my god, Chloe. Are you okay? Have you heard the news? We're in Atlanta now, can we meet up?'_

'Yeah, we're just putting our stuff in the room and we'll I'll meet you outside the hotel.'

'_Will do; I'll be there in a bit. Give me 10 minutes and me and Alex will be outside.'_

'Okay, see you in a bit.'

I put the phone down and unlock the door to the room we'd be staying in and my jaw dropped.

My god.

'I love you Liam Payne!' I shouted down the corridor, dropping my things to go and attack him with hugs. He smiled and hugged me back which was hard; he had his hands full. I kissed him and ran off back down the hall and into the luxury hotel room with a massive TV, and en suite, and a beautiful balcony.

I loved my friends.

I met Jack in the lobby after just throwing my things on the bed. As I came out of the lift he was sat with Rian on the sofa in the Starbucks in the lobby. I sneaked up behind him and Rian noticed me but I told him to stay quiet and look like he didn't recognise me.

Then I poked him in the back. He jumped and turned around and glared at me. Wow, menstrual much.

I flung myself on the sofa and rested on Jack's shoulder.

'Hold on.' He said, putting his drink on the table in front of him and put him around round me. Okay, I was trying to be strong inside and tell myself everything was okay but it wasn't, and Jack could tell that a mile off. He kissed the top of my head and leaned his head on mine.

The guys came down after me and greeted the guys and joined them after ordering a drink. We rushed to finish when we got the news from Kennedy that I could go and see him.

When we arrived at the hospital, I asked the nurse at the desk for O'Callaghan. She looked at me with sympathy and glanced to Louis, who had his arm round my waist. I was tempted to say 'no, he's not my boyfriend, John is' but managed to stop myself.

We had to wait for ages. So many people where flitting in and out of the hospital, a lot of people came to see John, fans of The Maine, but were refused because they weren't relatives. Some girls even tried to tell the nurse that they were their girlfriend but she stated she'd already reported that she was here. She never looked over at me; and that made me think she didn't want the girls to hate me.

When we finally arrived, I took Louis in with me (Jack and Rian could go in because they were friends) and I nearly died with shock. Louis had to steady me to make sure I didn't do one of my famous fainting phases again.

My boyfriend lay there, his left arm and leg in a cast, bruises covering every inch of his once perfect pale skin and unconscious.

Could this day get any worse than it already had?

Oh wait, it could.


	28. Arrival

John was lying there, still; he already looked like a corpse and my heart broke. I'd never even thought he could be in that state let alone seeing him like it. His bruised body looked black compared to the white sheets he lay on. There was hardly a part of his body that wasn't battered with bruises.

I burst out crying and wept into Louis' arms like a mother who'd lost her son. John meant so much to me, a boyfriend and more. I know it sounded horrible but he seemed already dead to me. Thinking about the fact he maybe never wake up, never speak to me again or hold me in his arms; I just kept crying the more I thought about it.

John was attached to a heart monitor that kept going up and down at random times like he was getting better and worse. Jack and Rian ran to be by his side as soon as they saw him but I stood in the doorway, unable to move and looking like I was about to speak when I wasn't. I could feel myself starting to get light headed and ready to keel over but I didn't want to and now definitely wasn't the time.

Louis wasn't affected that much; he'd never really known John except that he meant a lot to me but he still seemed traumatised by the day's events. I slowly lifted my head from his shoulder blade and looked at John. My thoughts started all over again and I whimpered a bit.

'He's still perfect to me,' I blurted, running to sit by Rian who'd sat on John's left. The sun beat in on the room, heating it and it made me hot so I took off my jacket. The ring John had given me glinted and shone in the bright light. Louis followed me to the bed and put his hands on my shoulders; he comforted me a bit more than on my own. I stared at Jack from across the bed and he was crying. I reached over and grabbed his hand in an attempt to help him through it too.

We were sat in complete silence which was kind of awkward when the nurse came in with a clipboard of results and looking worried.

'What is it?' I said instantly getting up and taking my hand away from Jacks. I twisted the ring around on my finger nervously.

Whenever I get worked up I find something to play with like my hands or a piece of jewellery so this time it was my ring. Louis' hand grabbed my wrist and he told me to sit down in case I fell down. I looked at the floor and then my ring; glancing at John's unconscious body.

Then I noticed something; his eyes were flickering and they opened slightly. I moved away so fast a nearly knocked the chair over and it made a horrifying squeak as it slid across the floor. I leaned over and grabbed hold of his hand whispering his name,

'John? John? John, are you awake? Are you okay? John?'

Then he muttered something; my name.

'Chl... Ch... Chlo... Chloe...'

'Oh my God, John, I'm here! I'm here and I'm not leaving you.' I pressed harder on his hand when I spoke but making sure I didn't hurt him. I did it to let him know I was there and I was staying with him.

I turned to Jack and Rian.

'Guys, go and get the rest of the band; they need to talk to John. Now!' I screamed in their faces. They ran out of the room while Jack was on his phone. The nurse gave him evil looks in the room when he wasn't supposed to be using a mobile.

I focused my attention back to John whose eyes had gotten wider and he was fully awake.

'Jesus, John, what happened? Tell me what happened,' I said, calming down and sitting in the chair that Louis had given me. I turned to him and asked if he wanted to stay. I wasn't being rude and implying for him to get out, I just didn't want him to stand there awkwardly when I was talking to him.

'I can go if you want a bit of time with him.' Before I could get a chance to reply, Louis kissed my forehead and smiled at John before walking out of the room. The nurse still stayed in the room but made herself scarce.

'John, what happened?' I repeated, looking him in his eyes; the only part of him that were fine and they were shining more than usual.

'Well, I was in a car crash,' he said, trying to look smug as he made a joke of himself.

'Still yourself,' I smiled, 'but was really happened?'

'Well, I can't remember much but I think I was driving down the highway and something like a lorry overturned in front of me. I hit it straight on and it threw me out of the car. After that I think I just blacked out because I can't remember anything after that.'

He had to stop between sentences for breath, his ribs were shattered and it was hard for him to talk like normal. I could imagine everything he was saying in great detail and I tried to stop myself but as he described it I couldn't help myself.

'Jesus John, why is it always you?' I said, kissing him again but on the lips. They were cold and hard but I didn't even attempt to pull away. For all I knew these could be the last moments I had with him. John laughed at my comment and then looked seriously at me.

'I love you, Chloe. If I don't survive, you know I'll always love you, right? I want my last moments to be with you.' he stammered, coughing up blood.

At that moment, John's family came through the door; his mom, dad and 2 brothers. His mom was in a state, eyes wide with shock and a tissue to catch the tears that were streaming down her face. His dad was crying silently and so were his brothers. I hugged both of his brothers which seemed to make them calm down a bit.

The nurse who had been quiet the whole time stood at the end of John's bed doing something I really didn't care about. I let his family talk to him and hold him as I stood at the back thinking about what to do.

My tears had dried up but new ones were starting to replace them as I saw him smiling and laughing at stupid comments his dad was making. Now was the time for the violins to come out; like I was in a movie.

'John? John!' I heard his mom scream as John started having a fit on the bed and the heart monitor was beeping. He slowed for a moment and called my name, bringing his hand up and waiting for me to grab it. I pulled myself closer to him and grabbed his hand. He then got worse as he had a fit, the nurses and doctors were running in trying to stop it.

Please, not John! Don't do it to him! Dear God, please not John; not the guy I'd fallen for and loved so much!

I prayed and prayed and prayed, hoping that it would stop, that he would wake up and be okay again like he was a minute ago.

When he finally stopped he'd slipped into a coma and his eyes closed.

Maybe those moments I had with him were going to be the last.


	29. Departure

I pulled him closer to me screaming 'no' repeatedly and hoping that God would bring him out of a coma.

Hours passed and I just stayed with him as did his family. Everyone had waited in the waiting room so patiently and I was so grateful. I hated leaving people waiting but when Niall came in to see if both John and I were okay, he said they were fine and I could take as long as I wanted.

Still, I was still concerned because it was nearly hitting 10:00pm and we'd been here for hours. I just lay next to John, holding his hand and leaning on the side of the bed resting my head on his, staring into space.

**11:00pm**

Another hour passed as I checked my phone. I was absolutely knackered and I wanted to sleep but I forced myself to keep my eyes open for the sake of John. Just thinking about him made me weep and looking at him made me feel worse.

Throughout the day, his body had seemed to get a tiny bit better, the bruises getting lighter. Jordan and Jess came in to check on me and John, as did the boys from One Direction. Apparently, Jordan said that someone had come up to the boys and asked if they could go into the children's ward to talk and play with the children who were suffering from numerous illnesses.

They were so considerate and selfless.

When Jordan left, I couldn't help myself but fall asleep to the sound of the music being played in the background...

When I woke up, my vision was blurred and someone had taken of my glasses. (Oh, sorry didn't I tell you I wore glasses? Oops, well now you know.)

_Oh SHUT UP_, I told myself.

Automatically, I reached for the table beside me and picked up my glasses. Then a voice told me inside my head that I wish I hadn't done that. Sat at the end of the hospital bed were John's family, Kennedy, Jared, Patrick and Garrett, and All Time Low. They all looked terrible; worn down and flustered. I looked at them, completely confused.

But then I realised.

There was a nurse standing in the room beside me, staring down and looking at me.

'What?' I asked, starting to shake.

'I'm so sorry Chloe and I don't really know how to tell you this but John's brain dead. He's being kept alive by the machine but we won't be able to revive him if we turn it off. I'm so sorry for your loss.' She said, as I broke down.

Jack went for me but I put my hand out to stop him coming anywhere near me. Knowing me, if anyone got any closer to me, I'd end up smacking them round the face.

But John wasn't dead yet.

'Are you going to turn it off?' I asked.

'Well, there's nothing more we can do to save him. Even if his heart is still beating, there's no chance that we can keep him alive. We've tried all we could but I'm afraid there's nothing more we can do. We have no choice but to turn the monitor off.'

I just stared at the floor and cried, tears streaming down my face like a flood but no noise came out of my mouth. My lungs seemed to refuse to take in air and my throat closed up.

'I'm sorry Chloe.' Jack said from across the room. The rest of the heads started nodding.

'We'll leave now, Chloe.' John's mom said, heading out the door.

'No! Why? You can't leave!' I called after her. She turned to face me.

'John's last wishes were to stay with you Chloe and I'm going to makes them come true. We've said our goodbyes; now it's time for you. He cared about you so much and you're such a nice girl. He loved you Chloe, and he still will.' His mom walked out with the tissue to her eyes and his dad and brothers followed.

Jack and Rian left; slightly turning the corner of their mouths up into a small smile. I turned to John as he lay there, so still I was concerned he'd already gone. I cried continuously ready to say my goodbyes to my gorgeous boyfriend who'd meant the world to me.

The nurse walked over to the life-support machine and looked at me.

'Are you ready? You're going to be able to have a couple of minutes until he stops breathing, okay?'

I nodded.

Then she switched it off. It was like she was switching off a part of me when she did it; like a part of me was dying along with John.

I led with John in the hospital until his last moments. I curled up in the bed with him and lay crying, as he slowly slipped away in my arms. His body went limp and he started to lose colour in his face. I seemed to squeeze harder as he left, not wanting to let go; hoping it was just a dream and that he was going to wake up.

The nurse came into the room silently, turning off the heart monitor and didn't say anything to me. I kissed John on the head and whispered in his ear,

'Goodnight, baby,'

I pulled away from him and sat in the chair behind me, just staring at him, still hoping it was just a dream.

I played with the ring on my hand, remembering the best memories we had on tour. I looked at John and saw he also had a ring on he'd never told me about. I lifted his hand and took the ring off and inside was the words _'you and I'_ just like my own ring.

Oh my god, he'd had the same ring as me and had kept it on since that day he gave mine to me.

Then, and only then did I smile, at the fact that I never left his side, until the day he died.

_I'll never leave your side until you die, either._


	30. Letting go

My smile faded back and I walked out of the room, hating the fact I was leaving John on his own even though he wasn't alive anymore. God, I hated that; thinking of him as dead and never coming back. I could barely walk and I was stumbling, my legs were turning to jelly but somehow I managed to keep myself together. Only when I arrived in the waiting room, did I break down and curl up into Jordan's arms.

She held me tight and cried with me but didn't make a big deal out of it. Most of the people in the waiting room tried to avoid eye contact or even turning their heads in the direction of the group in case someone started on them. Jordan led me to a chair in the corner of the room and sat me down before I fell. Niall and Louis kneeled in front of me, smiling and trying to make me laugh. I didn't work but they did their best.

I mean, how could you laugh when your boyfriend had just died in your arms and there was nothing you could possibly do to bring him back? Thinking about it just made me cry harder.

I wasn't the pessimistic type of person but when something brings me down, it brings me down. I hit rock bottom and it takes a lot of time and effort to make me feel better again. Jordan and Harry pulled a chair towards us and sat either side, holding onto my hands. Instead of taking their hands I pulled away and put my head in my hands. They didn't react and let me go but Louis tried to calm me down. Instead of grabbing him I pulled my hand away and struck him across the face. After realising what I did I instantly regretted it.

"Oh my god Louis I didn't mean to hit you! Oh Jesus I'm so sorry!' I fell to my knees and rubbed my hand against his face, as he winced in pain. I pulled his hand toward me and kept apologising to him.

_I'm such an idiot, _I thought to myself. _Why did I do that?_

Louis neither pulled away nor gave me dirty looks but just sat there, waiting for something else to happen.

'It's okay,' he managed to say in between me trying to sooth his face which was now going red and sore. The guys just stood around and looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Louis clasped his hand round mine and stood up, taking me with him. He opened his arms in an embrace and I took it, no doubt. I moved further into him, and he tightened his grip and I didn't want to let go, hoping that when I pulled away, somehow, it would be John's arms I was in.

'Can we go home, please?' I asked, facing Louis but addressing everyone. I turned to the group of friends who were circled around me and they nodded.

'Sure.' Louis said, kissing my forehead and taking my hand, pulling me towards to door and out of the hospital; the place I wanted to be further away from the most.

**[LOUIS' POV]**

I took her hand and led her out of the hospital; I imagined she wanted to be away from it as far as possible from what happened today. I felt sorry for her; she'd lost her boyfriend and he'd obviously meant the world to her. I knew how she felt... well, kinda... but that wasn't the point; she needed someone right now and I was going to be the one looking after her. There was no way that I'd let Niall get hold of her or to take her away from me, she meant too much for me to let go of.

I watched her intensely as she hobbled out of the hospital grasping onto my hand and I looked with concern at Niall who pretended not to see.

You see, both Niall and I had fallen for Chloe but neither of us wanted to tell her and it wasn't something we were planning to discuss for quite a while; not with her in this state anyway. Niall was one of my best friends and my band mate; I wasn't going to make a bet or make a deal like 'whoever gets Chloe gets this' and I'd never do that. I just wasn't like it.

I let Chloe sit in the front seat of the car with me while Jordan, Harry and Zayn joined us and Liam, Jess and Niall went in Liam's car.

She actually looked terrible. Her hair was messy and her make-up was running down her face; or what was left of it. She'd had a hard time and she needed rest and care and I was willing to do that.

After catching another flight back to England, we drove back to Harry's in complete silence; no-one bothered to say anything or even make an effort to say anything. Chloe quietly sniffed and wiped her nose constantly.

Jesus, what must be going through her head right now?

As I drove, I put my hand on hers and tried to comfort her. She looked down at my hand then smiled back at me for the first time in a while.

When we arrived back at Harry's there was a car out the front and parked on the pavement, close to blocking the driveway.

'Oh crap. My mom's here.' Chloe said, taking off her seatbelt and getting ready to get out of the car. I pulled up and followed her out of the car where I nearly walked into her after she stopped. Liam drove in and parked near my car, so busy looking at the scene to notice where he was going and nearly went straight into the back of my car. I glared at him when he got out and he mouthed 'sorry' as he joined me.

Chloe's mom didn't just walk out then; it was her mom, brother and her dad who were waiting for us to come home. Wait, her dad?

She'd told me about her dad; how he never bothered to make the effort when she was a child, how he had spent the money he was supposed to give her on himself, how he'd not even bothered to come and visit because he was more interested in watching the football. When she told me, it made me mad; and my blood started to boil.

I went to walk forward and demand why he'd had the cheek to turn up but I swear Chloe sensed something and pushed me back, holding her arm out to stop me. I knew she wasn't strong enough but her arm was like a barrier, stopping me anyway.

'What the hell do you want?' Chloe said, walking toward her father slightly but stopping herself.

'Your boyfriend just died; I thought you would want to talk about it.' he replied.

'Oh I'm sorry, you suddenly give a shit? I'm surprised that when you found out I had a boyfriend, you'd try to rip his throat out! You don't care; I don't even know why you're here. Just get lost and go and die already because you're already dead to me.' she retorted. I pulled my hand to stop her trying to go and kill him but instead she just held my hand.

I didn't move because I knew she would pull away. I tightened my grip on her hand when her dad started to talk to me,

'New boyfriend? Or another guy she's just using to get over the other one?'


	31. Bad timing

**[CHLOE'S POV]**

I stood there, shaking with anger at the comment my father had made. At that moment, I genuinely wanted to tear him limb from limb and rip out his throat. I grabbed Louis' hand for support and started yelling at him. I wrapped my fingers around Louis' as I opened my mouth. My mom just stood there stunned.

'Don't you DARE call him that! He's not my boyfriend; he's one of my best friends! He's more of a father than you'll ever be and that's not hard so don't dig your claws into him, he's done nothing wrong. I suggest you leave before I kill you because if I go to jail, I'll be happy. So drop dead you fucking bastard.'

'I'm more of a father?' Louis laughed, trying to calm the situation.

I turned to him, 'yeah and you're not much of one so that says a lot about him. Not that you're not a good father figure because you'd totally be a good one but I'm just trying to make a point if you see what I mean.'

_Oh my Jesus, total fan girl moment at the wrong time, you complete and utter retard, _I said to myself, blushing like a 12 year old.

I turned back to my dad and walked towards him, my fists clenched and this time, Louis Tomlinson wasn't there to stop me.

I lifted my fist that was so tight, my hand was white and full-on punched him in the face. As he cowered, he looked like a giant who'd been defeated. Couldn't be helped because of the 6 ft 6 build he had. I raised my head and my fist to threaten him.

'If you dare, come anywhere near me again, I will have a restraining order put on you and if you dare hurt any of my friends I will personally see to that. I'm only warning you so get the hell out of here.'

I was so angry, I was shaking. My dad pushed past me, giving the boys an evil look and walking to the car. Before he got in, he looked at me and said,

'I won't be far, I'm moving in over the road.'

_Could he not just piss off?_ I thought to myself, rubbing my fist because of the excruciating pain I was in. I turned round and saw everyone standing there, stunned and just flicking between me and my dad who was driving off. Louis ran over to me and gave me a hug. I winced in pain at my crushed hand and sat on the front porch.

'Oops, sorry,' he said, 'how are you feeling now?'

I raised my eyebrows at him.

'Yeah, maybe that was a stupid question.'

'Ha ha, don't worry about it.'

I rested my head on his shoulder while Harry nursed my hand which was now bleeding. I'd caught my knuckles on my dad's earring and it had scraped the skin off of my hand.

'Let's get you inside shall we? It's late and you need some sleep.' Zayn said, giving me a hand inside the house. Jordan and Jess were quiet throughout it all; something I wouldn't expect them to be. They walked straight in and went upstairs with Harry and Liam without another word to me or the rest of the boys.

Something was up and what the hell was it? They never kept things from me so why the change now?

Zayn came out of the kitchen and handed me a can of coke. Niall and Louis sat beside me looking apprehensive but I reassured them I would be fine. Okay, that was a lie but it was midnight and I wanted them to go to bed.

'Are you okay now? You don't need anything, do you?' Niall asked.

'No but thanks guys. I think I'm okay now, I just need to rest and I'll be okay. I love you guys,' I said to all three of them, 'but please go to bed 'cause you'll be lagging in the morning.'

'I'm staying.' Louis said without giving me a chance to argue.

'Okay.'

Zayn and Niall retreated to bed and I was left on my own with Louis. I'm not saying that was a bad thing; I needed someone with me. He knew I was upset but I didn't want him to see it. Instead, he turned to me and tried to get it out of me.

'Are you okay?'

'I... I think I'm okay.'

'You're not and you know it. Please, tell me what's wrong.'

Okay, it didn't take long for him to convince me.

'Louis, you know what's wrong. You witnessed it today. John died in hospital only an hour ago and my dad has turned up at the worst of times. I cannot deal with this anymore. I don't want to be anywhere near that bastard.'

'Stay with me?'

'What?'

'Stay with me. Move in with me. Until he leaves, why don't you come and stay with me?'

'Really? You'd do that? I didn't even know you had a place near here. I thought you all shared Harry's house.'

'Nah, we all have different places and mine's just down the road. Your dad won't even know you're there.'

I hugged him hard. This kid was potentially saving my life.

'Jesus Christ, Louis. Thank you so damn much.'

'No problem. And thank you also. I'm lonely. I need someone in my life.'

I'm not sure what way he meant that in but I tried to convince myself to rule out the girlfriend reason because he couldn't already get lonely after Hannah only just dumped him about 2 months ago. Convincing myself failed.

'You don't mind if I just randomly fall asleep here do you?' I asked Louis, pointing to his lap.

'Go ahead. You need the sleep. I'm not stopping you.'

I lay down on the sofa and cried myself to sleep quietly enough that Louis didn't notice me. He stroked my hair and it soothed me. All I could hear was his heavy breathing.

'Louis?' I mumbled.

'Mm?'

'Thank you.'

Then I passed out. Partially because of exhaustion and emotional levels going sky high.

Tomorrow was going to be a shit day, I guarantee you.


	32. I'm just completely lost now

When I woke up the next morning, the first thing I did was complain. Seriously, these headaches were getting worse. I knew it was from all the stress I'd been through lately because they'd started after everything kicked off with Jack and Jasmine. I stared at the ceiling wondering what to do when I realised I was on the floor. I definitely wasn't there last night but I was still wrapped in my blankets and then I thought...

_Louis._

I looked up at the sofa I was lying next to and saw Louis fast asleep and snoring on the sofa. I got up and picked up my duvet, slowly laying it down on him so he didn't get disturbed. It was quite light outside so I must've been quite late. I grabbed my phone from the table and checked the time.

10:00am.

I yawned and put the phone back on the table, trying to rub my eyes too. I told you, I can't multi-task. I went to lie back down when I heard arguing from the kitchen and I went to investigate.

I pressed my ear up against the door to hear what was going on. It was Jordan and Harry.

'You seriously think I'd do that? Harry, my best friend has just lost her boyfriend, I think I'd be more concerned about her at the moment, don't you think? I can't focus on anything else and I know how she feels.' I heard Jordan say to him.

'I know you care about her! I just thought you could be able to juggle two different relationships at the same time.' Harry replied.

Jordan threw a plate into the sink and it shattered.

'No. I can't! Purely because it's not just two relationships I'm juggling, Harry. It's my whole life! Ever thought about that?' Jordan hissed.

'Well I'm sorry I'm not good enough for you. I thought we could've worked this out, Jord. I'm sorry. I'll just end it here and right now so you can get on with your life.' Harry said. He sounded really upset and tired, and I probably caused it, keeping them up most of the day yesterday.

They argued more but I turned my attention to whoever was poking me in the sides. I spun round and ended up face to face with a tired and giggling Louis Tomlinson.

'Oh hey there,' He said, opening his arms. Sometimes I was convinced he was permanently high on something, 'do I get a good morning hug?'

I hugged him and he smelled nice but just like John used to be like first thing in the morning and it set me off. Tears streamed down my face and Louis looked at me like he did something wrong.

'Hey, what's wrong? Hey, don't cry. Please, don't cry,' he pulled me into another hug and I stayed there and I didn't want to move. I wrapped my arms around his waist and hid my face in his chest. He had one arm around my neck and the other rubbing my hair and fiddling with it. Don't know why, I'd dyed it so many times it was basically straw.

'What's wrong, Chlo? What did I do?'

'You didn't do anything,' I said instantly, trying not to make him think it was his fault, 'it wasn't you. It's just, when I was with John...' I choked when I said his name like it was a taboo but I was determined to finish my sentence.

'John always used to come up to me in the morning and wrap his arms around me and kiss my hair and hug me and...' I started to lecture but Louis shut me up.

'Hey, you'll get through this I know it. You're strong; did John ever say that to you? As unrealistic as this sounds, he's probably staring down on you and he's damn proud of you for being this strong so far.'

He pulled me into another hug and kissed me on the cheek.

_Oh no you don't. I'm trying to move on from John and there is no way I'm going to get with you. But you love him. SHUT IT._

Arguing with myself again... great.

Louis poked me again and I flinched.

'Hey, don't do that, I'm ticklish.'

'Oh really?' he gave me an evil smiled and started tickling the shit out of me.

'Oh my god, Louis don't! Oh my god, please, c'mon don't be mean! Louis!'

I was so wrapped up in having a fit of giggles I forgot all about Jordan and Harry arguing in the kitchen. I quickly shushed Louis and pressed my ear against the door again.

'What's going on?' he asked, leaning against me and listening in, hands round my waist.

'Jordan and Harry are arguing. I don't know whether to go in or not.'

'No, don't, babe. Leave them to it, I know Harry.' Louis rested his chin on my shoulder and I sighed.

We stayed there for a while but then woke up from the daydream when Jordan and Harry suddenly stormed out of the room, Harry going upstairs into his room and Jordan walking out into the front garden.

I looked at Louis and he nodded. He went upstairs and I went outside to find Jordan in tears and hurt.

'Hey, twin, what happened?'

I knew what happened but I would wait for her to tell me instead of barging in on what I heard. She just spilled it all out to me and she knew I'd understand.

'Harry wanted to talk to me about our relationship and about how I haven't focused enough on him. But the truth is I was really damn worried about you and I didn't want anything bad to happen to you 'cause I knew John meant a lot to you and it hurt me to see you in so much pain. I mean, we've only been dating for a couple of weeks but I already feel so close to him and so drawn to him, not like the fan girl I was ages ago.'

'Wait, you and Harry are dating? Awh, congrats!' I said, patting her on the back. It wasn't like it wasn't obvious but it was good to know that she told me herself. 'I don't think Harry's being selfish, he just really likes you and I can tell. He just doesn't want to lose you, twin.'

'Maybe you're right. But have _you_ not noticed anything going on? Jesus, twin you need to be more aware of your surroundings. Seriously, have you not seen the way he looks at you? Louis? He's insanely _in_ _love_ with you, retard! Could you not see it? He doesn't want to say anything because he's scared you'll flip and go "how could you say that when my boyfriend just died"?'

Me? Really, me? Louis Tomlinson likes _me?_

I didn't like how she mentioned John's death but she did a damn good impression of me.


	33. For crying out loud

'Oh my god, what?' I stuttered, only just managing to believe the words that came out of her mouth. 'Are you being serious?'

'Well, yeah, why wouldn't I be?' Jordan said. He elbowed me and winked, giving the 'you're totally on it with a hot guy' gesture.

I was about to mention how I had been on it with two others but I knew it was bad. I felt terrible, because I'd already felt I was over John. Well not over him, more like accepting the fact he was never gonna come back but I knew he was there.

Me and Jordan spoke for hours and when I brought up the Harry situation again she finally gave in and let me take her to him. When I checked my phone it was 5:00pm.

'C'mon, Jord, you've gotta kiss and make up with Harry.' I said dragging her by the arm and taking her inside where Harry and Louis were both sat on the sofa in the living room. When Harry saw Jordan, he instantly stood up. I stood next to Louis as I watched the most adorable couple in the world have a conversation and make up.

'I'm sorry, I was a douche and I didn't think and I'm stupid and-'

Harry was silenced by a kiss and I couldn't help but go 'awh' at it. Jordan laughed and flipped me off as she played tonsil tennis with Harry Styles. Louis slid his hand down and took mine, knowing it meant more than just friends.

Just as I was about to leave, 4 more bodies made their way down the stairs like zombies. Niall, Zayn, Liam and Jess all pushed their way down the stairs after fighting over who went in the shower first. Liam won, he always did but they all ended up getting their own way.

'Guys get a room. We don't want to see you both exploring each other's mouth's.' Liam groaned, slouching on the sofa and turning the TV on.

How could everyone be so happy? Well stupid question; the answer was easily. They hadn't been affected; they weren't close to John and they didn't know him very well. They could just carry on with their lives and be happy but I was standing here, mourning him and lost, not knowing what to do. Jesus, I needed to get a grip and go somewhere to take my mind off of him.

'Guys, I'm going out for a while to think.' I said, taking my hand away from Louis' and going to grab my coat.

'No. You're not going out on your own. Not at this time and the state you're in.' Niall protested, pointing to the spot on the sofa to try and get me to stay.

'Niall, I need to go out. I can't stay stuck inside for the rest of my life and be all depressed and shit. I need to be outside for a while. And on my own so please don't follow me, okay?' I said and before anyone could say anything else, I grabbed my baseball jacket and walked out the door, slamming it behind me.

I could connect with the outside world and my favourite part of the day was sunset and I knew a perfect place to see the sun go down. I walked over the road; nearly getting knocked over in the process and started heading toward the hill which overlooks the town I live in.

'Chloe? Chloe, wait up!'

Louis' voice echoed through my head like a bell. And Jesus, it hurt. I spun round and sighed; did I or did I not tell everyone I wanted to be on my own? I faced him as he approached me, looking into my eyes for something even remotely happy. He grabbed my hands and pulled me toward him.

'Please don't do anything stupid to yourself. That's why everyone's worried about you.' He said, rubbing my hands.

'Louis, I'm not going to kill myself. John never would've wanted it and I'm not that stupid.'

He sighed, like he didn't believe me but why?

'Then let me stay with you. I'm not going to let you go out at this time on your own.'

God, he was so protective.

'Fine you can stay with me but I'm in control of where we're going. Deal?'

'Deal.'

I turned back around without another word and led him to the hill where the sun was already setting. He looked stunned when he saw the view.

The sky was a mix of purple, pink and blue and the sun was setting on the crease of where the sea and the sky met. The sky was nearly cloudless, bar a few rogue clouds floating far apart. We were both standing on the top of the hill and looking down at the town lights from the college, the houses and the multi-coloured lights from the pier.

'Oh my god it's beautiful.' Louis spluttered sitting down on the grass and letting the wind blow through his hair. Above us the sky had already started going a dark navy blue, like it was consuming the colours in the sky. I joined Louis next to him and leaned back.

'It's where I used to go when I could barely cope with anything. I always used to come here and draw or just listen to the world. When my granddad died I used to come up here constantly. My mom thought I was up to something but she never knew I would come here. You can't tell anyone okay? This is my place and I don't want everyone to come and find me here. Promise?' I said.

Louis held up his hand and stuck his pinkie finger up, 'I promise.'

We locked fingers and something sparked inside of me. I looked at Louis then quickly looked away.

'It's a really nice place to be, though.' He finally said breaking the silence.

'Yeah I know. It's really an amazing place.'

I led down to stare at the sky. It had now gone darker and the stars had started to appear. Now there were more lights on over the town and the moon had come out, casting light which was reflecting on the sea. It was perfect.

Louis sat up and my heart started beating fast then stopped.

'Chloe, I know this is a really stupid time to tell you but...'

He trailed off and it was like his throat was closing up and I fidgeted a bit.

_Please not now, Louis. Please don't say it._ I thought to myself.

He looked at me then hung his head. My heart was still racing and I sat up to face him. I wanted to tell him I knew but I just couldn't get the words out of my mouth to tell him.

Did I feel the same about him or was it just another feeling that would blow over? Could I move on this quickly when I'd only just lost John?

I don't know! How could I know anything? Jesus Christ, why was life so hard?

Please, someone tell me.

_Do it Chloe, you love him. I'm still here and I'll be with you through everything. _John's voice echoed again like at the hospital when he'd... he'd...

NO. I'd never think of him as that. If he was talking to me he was still with me and he spoke sense. John always talked sense when he was alive and now was no different.

_I'm getting bored here. Just kiss him._

I could imagine John sat there with his arms crossed with an unimpressed expression on his face.

I snapped out of my daydream and focused back to Louis.

'What did you want to say?' I asked, looking him in the eye.

'Oh, nothing... doesn't matter.'

Jesus Christ.


	34. Resistance really IS useless

I knew what he wanted to say but he couldn't bring himself to say it. If I didn't get it out of him and believe what Jordan said was true, I had no hope. I didn't have hope anyway.

Time passed and we spent the time looking at the stars and chatting, something like best friends would do. Maybe we were that; a best friend. But only a best friend and nothing more.

_Oh come on Chloe don't kid yourself. You have feelings for him. You always have, from the day you met him._

I needed to get myself sorted out. Arguing with myself wasn't normal. I pulled my knees up to my chest and hugged them and I felt isolated even if Louis was sat right next to me. It was late when we'd only just started to get moving. I stood up and looked down at him.

'We'd better get going.' I said, turning to look at the sky once more to see the stars shining and the moon glowing. I sighed. Louis got up and faced me.

'Okay. Chloe, I-'

I pressed my finger to his lips.

'I know.' I whispered to him. He leaned in to kiss me but I turned my head away, so he kissed me on the cheek.

_Stupid stupid stupid._

I leaned into him this time and whispered into his ear.

'Thank you. For everything.'

And then I kissed him lightly on the lips which was something I sensed we were both waiting for. I didn't want it to go any further so I pulled away and dig my hands deep into my pockets and started walking away quickly so I could get back to Harry's as fast as possible. Louis had a delayed reaction and didn't catch up with me until I was in visual sight of the lights from Harry's house. People were still up and I wondered who it was. Most likely Harry; he barely ever slept.

I went to cross the road when a hand planted itself on my shoulder. I turned around thinking it was Louis but it wasn't. My dad stood there, drunk with a bottle of vodka in hand.

'Chloe...' he slurred, taking another gulp out of the bottle and wiping his mouth.

'Ew, get away from me.' I said, jerking away from his grip.

'Chloe, listen to me. You have to listen to me...'

'No, I don't because you don't have anything to say that will change my opinion about you.'

He put his hand on my shoulder again but I slapped his hand away quickly before I got anymore chills down my spine.

'Just get lost. I'm not gonna deal with your shit anymore.'

Louis appeared by the side of us and looked angry.

'Dude, leave her alone. She doesn't want any more crap from you. Just leave her alone, okay?'

My dad grimaced and then glared at Louis.

'Fine.'

He stormed off back into his house and I looked at Louis. I ran over to him and pulled him into an embrace. A tear slipped down my cheek as I hugged him.

'Sssh. It's gonna be okay.'

'No, Louis. It's not!'

I cried more into his shoulder.

'Hey, you'll get through this.' Louis reassured me.

We headed back to Harry's where Niall was the one that was up and everyone else was asleep. Niall stood up and gave me a hug. He'd seen what happened whilst peering out of the window.

'Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?' he asked, looking into my eyes and checking for any signs of pain or fright. Luckily, I had a way of hiding emotions; yes, like a vampire.

'No, I'm fine. There may be a bit of emotional scarring though.' I tried to make a joke out of it but Niall and Louis weren't having any of it.

'Go to bed. You can sleep in mine and I'll sleep on the sofa again. It's quite comfortable.' Louis suggested.

'No way, you have your bed and I'll sleep here again.'

'No.'

'Yes.'

'Fine.'

'Thank you.'

Louis smirked and Niall went upstairs to bed. Did he really wait for us to come back? Louis turned to me and started to talk but I pressed my fingers to his lips. I pointed at the ceiling and then at the stairs. I'd seen Harry and Jordan peeking through the bars, obviously trying to get some kind of gossip from listening in to our conversation but I was having none of it.

'Go to bed twin! And you, Harry.' I shouted at then. They groaned and walked hand in hand to Harry's room where it started to get noisy. Louis raised his eyebrows and we ended up in fits of laughter, turning on the TV to drown out the noises from above us.

'Shut up!' I shouted up, after I muted the TV. The noises stopped and I turned the TV back on again. Yay, Big Brother was on; the TV show I hated the most.

'So what did you want to say to me earlier?' I confronted Louis who'd eyes widened and face went bright red. I stifled a giggle and he looked away shyly. 'C'mon! Tell me, Louis.'

I pouted and he laughed. 'It's nothing honestly it's not. Don't worry. Forget I ever mentioned it.'

I punched his arm and he pretended to look upset. His arms were hard; he'd been working out more so it definitely didn't hurt him. I raised an eyebrow and he laughed, sliding back into the position he was sat in before.

Then he did the cheesiest thing I'd ever known any guy to do.

He started to do the 'yawn and move your arm behind the girl' move so before he had chance to get his arm even close to my head I leaned in and crawled up to him and leaned into his body. His arms curled around my shoulder and I wrapped my hand around his torso. He kissed my head and started to play with my hair again, like he usually did whenever we came into touching contact. Weirdly, I didn't drift off to sleep when he did that but I didn't feel the slightest bit tired; instead I was wide awake. I stared at the moving pictures on the TV and listened to the light breathing from Louis.

His heart was beating so fast I lost count of beats per minute.


	35. Making a move

All I could hear was the pounding of his heart and the thumping of mine in time with each other. His chest was rising and falling as he breathed and I couldn't help but smile.

_Maybe this is what I need. Maybe I should say something to him about how I feel. But I don't know how I feel at the moment. Everything's so messed up and it's just like a jigsaw puzzle and I'm missing one crucial piece... the centre piece; the piece that completes the puzzle, the piece that makes everything make sense, the piece that completes _me_. But the missing piece is him. Who am I kidding? I leave it like this any longer. If what Jordan said was true then how could I mess up? But I could never bring myself to say it._

For once since all this messed up my life, I didn't argue with myself. The second part of my mind, the pessimistic part was quiet, like it could argue with my other side. If I did this, then everything would be okay. I'd be happy.

_But then there was still my father._

No, there you go. My pessimistic side couldn't stay quiet for long.

_Oh, and that bit I said about before sounds really pathetic. I can't say that to him._

Oh shut up.

I fidgeted and sat up facing away from Louis. He pulled his arm away from me and looked confused.

'Whoa, what's wrong? Did I do something?' Louis asked.

'N... No you didn't it's just... don't worry.'

'No, tell me.'

'I can't.'

'So now we're keeping things from each other?'

'No... it's not like that.'

'That's how I see it.'

'You're seeing it wrong.'

Louis sighed and I felt bad. Why were we arguing? This was stupid. But I'm definitely not making a move now. I'd had enough.

'I think we should go to bed now, Louis. I've had enough late nights lately and it's not fair on you guys.' I said, grabbing the blanket from the other sofa and pulling it over me.

Louis got up and left without another word to me that night and again, I fell asleep crying.

**[LOUIS' POV]**

I didn't want to say anything to her because I knew she'd flip out on me. It was best just to leave her to it and sort it out herself. I got up and left her to go to bed. She was right; it wasn't fair on any of us. Sure, I wanted her to be happy but I didn't want to walk away but it seemed the only thing I could do.

I walked upstairs quietly, making sure I didn't disturb the others and sneaked into my room. I changed into a pair of boxers and a shirt and crawled into bed. I pulled the covers up and slid underneath. I hated sleeping in a double bed on my own; I felt lonely.

_Dammit, Louis. Just tell her how you feel._

I knew how I felt about her but it was hard to tell her when she was going through such a rough time. No, I had to tell her.

I slid further under the covers and promised myself I would say something.

'Tomorrow. I'll tell her how I feel tomorrow. I'm not going to back down or tell her a lie; I'm going to be straight with her and I'm going to tell her how I feel.' I said to myself. I panicked for a bit because I thought I heard movement in my room but it was only the window banging. I closed it and went back to bed.

My eyes got heavy and I slowly drifted, smiling partially because I'd finally get the chance to tell the girl I loved how I felt and hopefully, she'd feel the same.

**[CHLOE'S POV]**

I woke up numerous times in the night; partially because of the nightmares I was having and the heat that was keeping me up but when I woke in the morning, I was not so pleased to say I got a face full of my own clothes. When I'd pulled them from my face, I looked up to see Louis who was standing at the end of the sofa in a flannel shirt, skinnies and converse, smiling.

'Good morning to you too.' I said, throwing the clothes on the back of the sofa. 'Can I help?'

'You and me. Starbucks. Now.' He said, getting ready to walk out of the door.

'Where is everyone?' I asked, hopping into a pair of jeans and pulling my My Chemical Romance t-shirt over my head.

Louis turned round, 'they've all gone out. Now hurry up because I don't want to be caught again and be attacked by fans.'

I grabbed my coat and ran out the door to catch up with Louis who was already halfway down the road. I ran and jumped on his back and he stumbled. I kissed him on the cheek and got down.

'Hey!' he laughed, poking me in the side.

'I'm sorry about last night. I was a bit... menstrual.' I said to him. He hugged me and nodded.

'It's okay, don't worry about it. Friends?' he held out his pinkie.

'Best friends.' I said and we locked fingers.

He smiled and we made our way to Starbucks. I forgot to check the time and when I arrived in the coffee shop, I looked at the clock.

Holy crap; was it really 3:00pm?

Louis grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the counter to order. After we paid, we escaped before Louis could be recognised and took me back to the hill where we'd been the night before. We sat down with our drinks and started talking about an awkward subjects; relationships.

Then my mind just went, _fuck it._

'Louis?'

'Yeah?'

'I... dammit! I don't know how to say it.'

He pressed his finger to my lips and nodded, 'I'll say it for you.'

My eyes widened the words came out of his mouth, 'I love you.'


	36. I never realised how much he meant to me

I stared at him like a complete retard when he said it, like I couldn't believe it. I opened my mouth to speak but all there was was silence. Louis lifted his hands from holding mine to close my mouth. To be honest, I couldn't even speak. He's literally taken the words out of my mouth.

'I love you.' he repeated and then I just did what I knew was right.

I kissed him. His hand slipped from my chin and curled round my waist, locking our lips and making the kiss deeper. I always dreamt about the moment I'd managed to find love in my place I felt the most secure in. Our bodies locked and it was like we were really meant to be together. No guilt filled my head at all; absolutely nothing. I felt like John was up there smiling at me, happy that I'd finally found the person I needed in my life. Maybe John's death was to show that he wasn't the one and Louis was. God, fans were going to have so much fun when they found out.

I really didn't want to pull away from Louis. I never wanted to let him go because I was scared I was going to lose him. Then, he pulled away and reassured me of my fear and it like he could read my mind.

'You are never going to lose me, Chloe. I swear nothing is going to happen to us. I don't care if Jack said all this or John said all this; I love you and I always will and I mean it. I'm not going to change and I'll make sure we're a perfect couple because I want this to last.' He told me firmly.

And now I was happy with my life. I was happy with the guy I longed for the most, I was happy from the moment he said 'I love you'. I smiled at him and kissed him.

'You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this. I love you too!' I threw my arms around his neck and inhaled his scent.

Jesus, I was so happy. I dragged Louis from his spot and we made our way back to the house.

Unfortunately, someone was standing in the way.

My dad.

'Chloe, please listen, I'm sorry about everything. I didn-' he started but I stopped him.

'I don't care! It's fine, just forget it! Do what you want; I'm too happy to care anymore!' I shouted cheerfully at him and he stood there, stunned.

I took Louis back to the house where the others were sat in the living room. We approached quietly and stood behind them hand in hand and then I coughed. Everyone spun round suddenly and looked from our hands that were linked and back to us then to each other.

The room erupted in loud cheers and a bottle of champagne was popped open.

Were they planning this?

Clearly they were.

Jordan started blasting out Painting Flowers, a song from Alice in Wonderland and we both sang loudly to it:

_Strange maze, what is this place?_

_I hear voices voices over my shoulder,_

_Nothing's making sense at all,_

_Wonder, why do we race?_

_When every day we're runnin' in circles,_

_Such a funny way to fall,_

_Tried to open up my eyes,_

_I'm hopin' for a chance to make it alright_

The last thing I remember that night before I passed out was Louis taking my hands in his and singing to me when the chorus started:

_When I wake up, _

_The dream isn't done.  
>I wanna see your face,<br>and know I made it home.  
>If nothing is true, <em>

_What more can I do?  
>I am still painting flowers for you.<em>

And then our lips locked for the first of many times in the coming months.

**Months later...**

For the next few months I did what any other person would do; I started college, went out with friends and studied. My relationship with Louis stayed the same and no, we didn't split up and yes, quite a lot of the fans were annoyed but I didn't care.

I was happy with Louis, Jordan was happy with Harry and Jess ended up dating Liam... which wasn't really a surprise seeing as they were so in love.

Then, one day when I was coming out of college with Jordan and waiting for Louis to pick me up; I had a call from an unknown number.

'Hello?' I said.

'_Is that you, Chloe?'_

'Oh my god, hey Ross, how's it going?'

'_It's... it's alright. I guess we're coping over here.'_

I stopped dead. It was the one year anniversary of John's death and I'd promised I'd call the guys when I woke up. Dammit.

'Jesus, I'm so sorry. I mean, I miss him so much.' I said sounding as sympathetic as possible.

'_Yeah, well, we're glad you're okay. We just called to let you know that we're coming over to England to organise his funeral.'_

'Can I help?'

'_We could do with it, thanks. We're at the airport now so we should be there in a few hours. I've gotta go but we'll meet you in town, okay?'_

'Okay. Thanks, Ross. Bye.'

I put the phone down. Apparently, John said before he died that he wanted his funeral to be a year after he died but he never told anyone why. Jordan rubbed my back as I started crying from the memories I had with John on tour; good and bad but I said to myself that the funeral would be positive; to remember what a great person he was.

God, I sound more like his mom than I did his ex-girlfriend. But in some way, John would always still be a boyfriend to me, no matter how many boyfriends I had in the future. Hopefully it would be one because I wanted to stay with Louis.

Later that day, I got Liam to drop me off in town again with Jordan, Louis and Jess to meet John's family. When they arrived, I said to myself I wouldn't cry or be a pessimist and I stuck to that.

We drove back to Louis' where I was now living and spent hours planning everything ready for John's funeral. It was grim and I hated the word 'funeral'. It was just so depressing. But I said to myself again I wouldn't be pessimistic and I would make sure I would be positive.

All I had to do was wait until the day came...


	37. Happy ending

When the day came, my heart was beating so fast I was scared it was going to come out of my chest. The boys tried to sooth me but I just couldn't help but panic.

Everyone was in Harry's house and dressed in black, presents and cards for the family and flowers to throw onto John's grave. To be honest, I really didn't want to go; it was too tragic. Louis held my hand as we left the house and led me to the car that was parked outside. I turned and watched Harry lock up and follow us to the car.

Everyone looked okay except me. I told myself not to cry because I'd end up looking a mess and it would start everyone else off.

**Half an hour later...**

When we arrived, the amount of people there was ridiculous. Close friends of John's and his family members; people I'd barely seen before and people John didn't even mention were there all lined up in black and white. John's coffin was there and I squealed a bit; worried about literally anything that might go wrong. After Niall parked the car and I got closer to the crowd of people I could hear whispers and people turned to look at me. Some looked at me like I'd caused this but I denied the fact that was the real reason.

It was actually quite a nice day which was ironic. The sun was shining and it was cloudless, just like the time when I'd first met John and when I spoke to him. I flinched in the sunlight and headed over by the tree so I could stay covered from the rays but it still sneaked upon me even when I moved.

As the funeral preceded and the vicar said the things about John being a great man and a talented musician, people started to break down and cry and I tried so hard not to but I just couldn't do it.

Louis patted my back and Jordan rubbed my hand to comfort me but it didn't work. I was one of the last people to give my flowers to John and I stayed there for quite a while. I didn't throw them in until I'd finished my speech. I said it quiet enough so no-one could hear it except a few people standing close to me and even then they could only catch a few words.

I held the flowers in my hand and starting talking to the shiny oak coffin that was sitting just a couple of feet below me.

'John, I know you're gone and it wasn't the best way to die to be honest. But you were one of the nicest people I've ever known and when I first met you I knew you were something special. You've helped me through so much like when I had the problems with Jack and you've always been there through everything. I loved you so much and I still love you now. I will never ever stop loving you John and I hope you can hear me when I say all this. Please, just to let me know you're not just a dead body now, give me a sign so I know I can carry on with my life knowing you're there watching over me.

'You were such a great person and so talented; the band will never be the same again without you but I'm sure they'll carry on so they can remember you. You'll never be forgotten, John because you were the person that stood out for people. I love you so much and I always will no matter what. But just remember to give me a sign when I leave, just so I know you're going to be there with me and that you approve of everything I've done. Goodbye, John. I love you.'

I kissed the roses and a tear slipped down my cheek as I dropped them on top of the pile of the flowers that were already growing. I knew they'd wither away but it helped to think that they would blossom on his grave.

I pulled myself away from the grave and backed into Louis' arms and he wrapped them around my waist, kissing my forehead.

'It's gonna be okay. He's watching over you.' Louis promised. Then he added something else on the end, 'I love you.'

I loved hearing it from him. I buried my face in him and cried for nearly the rest of the day.

The Wake was okay, I suppose. It was more positive and I'd finally stopped crying, talking to relatives about John. Talking about it made me feel better and when we left, I felt slightly happier than when I'd woken up this morning.

**Back at Harry's**

When we arrived, Jordan looked weird. Well, she looked like she was more bouncing with excitement.

'Guys, we have something to tell you. You may wanna sit down.' She said, jumping slightly.

_We?_

She grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him over so they were facing us as we all sat on the sofa. Harry beamed with delight and he winked at Louis who raised his eyebrows in confusion.

'Spit it out, guys!' Jess and Liam both said in unison, sitting on the edge of their seats.

Jordan pulled something out of her pocket and at the first glimpse I gasped...

_Scans. Oh my god._

'I'm fucking pregnant!' she yelled, jumping up and down. Harry could do nothing but smile and laugh as they kissed.

_Awwwh, baby Harry's and baby Jordan's running around the house. Cute!_

'Congratulations, twin! Oh my god!' I yelled, hugging her tightly.

'Chloe, can I ask you something?' Jordan said when we'd separated.

'Sure, shoot it.'

'Will you be the god mother?'

I was completely stunned. 'Of course I will! Oh I'm so happy for you guys!'

Me and Jordan ran outside for no reason whatsoever and started raving on the front lawn to the music Zayn had put on inside. When we both sat down in exhaustion, the wind rushed through my hair. I looked at Jordan but her hair didn't look like it was affected. I raised my eyebrows at the fact there was only wind around me.

Then it rushed through my hair again.

'John?' I asked the wind. (Stupid, I know)

There it was again.

'Huh? What did you say, Chloe?' Jordan asked.

I smiled at myself and shook my head, 'oh nothing, don't worry.'

There was the sign and here is the ending.


	38. DISCLAIMER

**DISCLAIMER**

I own none of the characters except Jasmine, Chloe, Jordan, Jess and Emily and I own none of the songs mentioned in this story.

I hoped you enjoyed the story but there will not be a sequel so please don't request one.

Love resistanceisuseless (:


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